Messi’s Farewell Match Sends Demand for Trips to Buenos Aires Up Nearly 5,000%

^{Lionel Messi representing Argentina}

Lionel Messi’s farewell match for Argentina has triggered a sharp surge in demand for travel to Buenos Aires. Fans from cities across the country have been searching for tickets and planning trips to the capital in much greater numbers, Argentine outlet TN reports.

Argentina will face Benin at Estadio Monumental on October 6 at 8 p.m. local time.

Interest rose most sharply in Rosario, Messi’s hometown. According to travel platform Despegar, searches for flights to Buenos Aires jumped by nearly 5,000% compared with the same period last year.

Nationwide, searches for domestic flights to Buenos Aires increased by 122%.

Demand for intercity bus travel also climbed significantly. Searches for bus tickets to Buenos Aires for October 5–6 were 64% higher than a year earlier. Around two-thirds of those searches were for October 5, the day before the match.

Interest spiked particularly sharply after the match date was announced. According to Argentine bus-ticketing platform Plataforma 10, searches on September 22 for trips to Buenos Aires on October 5–6 were around 15 times higher than the average level before the announcement. Another surge came on September 24, when tickets for the match went on sale.

Travel company Almundo reported a similar trend. After the match date was announced, the average daily number of searches for trips to Buenos Aires rose by around 565% compared with the previous week. Sales then increased by approximately 150% after match tickets went on sale.

A trip to the match including round-trip flights and three nights at a three-star hotel will cost Argentine fans an average of 882,000 pesos (about $578) per person.