Soccer star Lionel Messi published a farewell letter to his father, Jorge Messi, who died Saturday at 68, in which he expressed all his pain and revealed details of what he experienced during the World Cup.
“Dad, I still can’t believe you’re gone. It hasn’t sunk in, or rather, I don’t want it to sink in,” said the Argentine star in an Instagram post. He traveled to Rosario, Argentina, over the weekend for his father’s wake.
Tributes poured in from the wider sporting community with Cristiano Ronaldo, Neymar, Luka Modrić and Carlos Alcaraz all commenting on Messi’s post. Ronaldo, the former Barcelona superstar’s big rival on the pitch, wrote: “A huge hug for you and yours in these hard moments, Leo. A lot of strength to you.”
The player reflected on what it was like to go through the 2026 World Cup without his father’s presence, as Jorge Messi was already facing a serious health condition and could not travel to the United States.
“You kept asking me to play in the last World Cup and just days before it started was when you got worse. It was the first time you weren’t going to be at a tournament, but mom told me you were going to get better and that you’d be well enough to travel. I told you we’d make it to the final so you could come,” recounted the Inter Miami star.
