A bizarre and unexpected twist has left Indian football fans stunned after a teenager managed to prank the All India Football Federation (AIFF) by impersonating Barcelona legend Xavi Hernandez.
The 19-year-old sent a fake email pretending to be Xavi, applying for the position of India’s head coach and surprisingly, the federation initially believed it.
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The incident, now widely circulated on social media, has sparked a flood of reactions and raised serious questions about AIFF’s vetting process.
How did a fake email convince AIFF that Xavi had applied?
The drama began when AIFF’s national team director Subrata Paul confirmed to The Times of India that an application from Xavi Hernandez had been received for the head coach position.
This claim was very surprising for the football community, with many wondering why the Spanish icon would consider such a move.
Then, a video surfaced on social media revealing that the email came from “[email protected]”, clearly a non-official and easily forged address.
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Who was behind the prank and how was the truth revealed?
Sports journalist Naman Suri soon revealed the real story. The email, he said, wasn’t from Xavi at all but from a teenager who pulled off the prank for fun.
Suri said he had spoken directly to the 19-year-old prankster, who even showed him a screen recording from his sent folder as proof.
In a post on X (formerly Twitter), Suri wrote: “It wasn’t Xavi who applied to coach India. It was a 19-year-old who used a fake email ID. I spoke to him and he showed me a screen recording from his Sent folder.”
Suri didn’t stop there. He also criticized the AIFF’s handling of the situation, saying, “Indian football deserves better.”
Did Xavi or his camp react to the fake application?
As the story gained traction online, Barca Times, a popular independent fan account with over a million followers, also weighed in. They reported that people close to Xavi confirmed he had never shown any interest in coaching India.
Interestingly, they went a step further and suggested that the AIFF may have even used Xavi’s name to generate attention.
“People close to Xavi insist that he never applied… They believe the AIFF intentionally used his name to boost the profile of the role,” the account posted.