Crazy Argentine Fans Halt Messi & Co Parade with Dangerous Jump into Team Bus

Argentina’s World Cup heroes have had to cut short their open-top bus victory parade and greet jubilant fans from the sky in helicopters after fans threw projectiles and tried to jump on the team’s bus.

Lionel Messi and his fellow World Cup-winning players were transferred to helicopters after four million supporters thronging the streets of Buenos Aires made it impossible for them to continue their journey.

The helicopters carrying the footballers circled low above the skies of the capital including the area around the iconic Obelisk monument as crazed fans chanted and applauded before taking them back to the Argentine Football Association’s (AFA) training facilities HQ near Ezeiza Airport where the victory parade had begun around midday.

It will take in landmarks including the iconic Obelisk, where the majority of expectant Argentinian supporters have congregated.

AFA president Chiqui Tapia confirmed in a tweet just before 4pm local time: ‘They won’t allow us to greet everyone who was at the Obelisk.

‘The security organisations that were escorting us won’t let us continue.

‘I apologise in the name of all the players. A real shame.’

Gabriela Cerruti, an Argentine presidential spokeswoman, tweeted as TV stations broadcast the breathtaking images of the crowds looking upwards towards the players above them in the sky: ‘The world champions are flying along the route they were taking because it was impossible to continue by road with the explosion of happiness.

‘Let’s continue celebrating in peace and showing them our love and admiration.’

The Argentine players had intended to travel on the bus from the AFA training facilities to the Obelisk, where an estimated three millions fans congregated after their nation’s thrilling penalty shootout win over France on Sunday.

AFA confirmed a last-minute change of plan on the advice of government safety advisors earlier yesterday afternoon/on Tuesday afternoon before the later decision to switch to the helicopters.

The party mood briefly turned ugly as news the players were instead going to greet fans from the 25 de Mayo motorway seeped out.

There were reports of missiles being thrown at police and footage emerged of crazed fans hijacking a police car and partying on top of it near the Obelisk in the aftermath of the announcement.

Lionel Messi and Argentina had earlier returned as heroes as they were greeted by thousands of fans at Ezeiza International Airport after touching down in Buenos Aires.

The national team and the World Cup trophy, which they lifted for a third time Sunday, landed back in Argentina after a roughly 21-hour flight at around 2.20am local time Tuesday morning.  

Talisman Messi emerged from the plane first and lifted the World Cup trophy triumphantly into the air as he and head coach Lionel Scaloni stepped on to the airplane steps to greet the waiting fans. 

The PSG star, with his medal around his neck, could not keep the beaming smile off his face as he soaked up the homecoming. 

Messi and his teammates came close to being knocked off the back of their open-top bus shortly after arriving.

Video shows Messi and four teammates including Leandro Paredes and Di Maria  being forced to duck under an overhead power cable at the last second as they drove slowly through a sea of jubilant Argentinian fans. 

Despite the long-haul flight, the players were still in a jubilant mood as they waved to their adoring fans from the top of the bus, which read, ‘Champions of the World,’ on the side. 

The champions’ bus crawled through the streets of Buenos Aires and fans flooded the streets to get a glimpse of their heroes. 

Fireworks lit up the sky over the crowds, who were several rows deep, and music group ‘La Mosca’ played. 

The flight – with the World Cup trophy in tow and which left at 5am Argentina time – refueled in Italian capital city Rome, before flying on to Ezeiza International Airport in Buenos Aires. 

In total there were two planes for the entourage of the champions, including players, coaches, staff and family members. 

After landing, the jubilant players are expected to begin displaying the trophy to their adoring fans, including at the iconic Obelisk landmark in the centre of the Argentina capital. 

Fans in the Argentine capital flooded the streets as they waited for the return of the World Cup winners.

Despite the flight’s late arrival, many stayed up to gather outside the headquarters of the Argentinian Football Association to greet the team. 

They created a party atmosphere, playing drums and singing as they continued to celebrate their nation’s triumph on football’s greatest stage. 

Many donned the national team’s jersey, in particular Messi’s No. 10, to welcome the players home. 

Flags were draped and hung from any possible object, including vehicles, while a giant replica of the Jules Rimet trophy was suspended from a crane. 

Some supporters were even spotted on top of horses waving the nation’s flag, while the replica of the World Cup trophy was displayed in front of them.