Every Saturday, we revisit a story from the archives. This originally aired on December 12, 2022. None of the dates, titles, or other references from that time have been changed.

Lionel Messi - considered by many to be the greatest football player of all time - is two wins away from finally winning a World Cup. And though much of his native Argentina is behind him - they are not the only ones. Continents away, in parts of India and Bangladesh, Argentina and Messi superfans also hope to see him lift the cup. So what’s behind the Messi mania in South Asia, and what does it say about the soft power of ‘the beautiful game?’

In this episode: 

• Somdutta Bhattacharyya, Argentina superfan in India
• Tamjidul Hoque (@TamjidulH24v2), Argentina superfan in Bangladesh
• Jasmine Garsd (@JasGarsd), Host, The Last Cup

Episode credits:

This episode was updated by Tamara Khandaker. The original production team was Ashish Malhotra, Chloe K. Li, Ruby Zaman, and Halla Mohieddeen.

Our sound designer is Alex Roldan. Our engagement producers are Adam Abou-Gad and Vienna Maglio. Andrew Greiner is lead of audience engagement. Alexandra Locke is The Take’s executive producer.

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