Jorge Messi, father of Lionel, dies at 68

Lionel Messi’s father Jorge Messi has died at the age of 68 after a long illness, the family confirmed on Friday night. He passed away at a medical clinic in Rosario, Argentina, surrounded by his wife Celia and their three other children—Rodrigo, Matias and Maria Sol. The news comes just weeks after Messi returned to action for Inter Miami following Argentina’s World Cup campaign.

Jorge Messi had spent his final months shuttling between a medical centre in Rosario and the family home, a period marked by steady decline that the family had shared sparingly with the public. Although his health had been fragile for some time, the timing still cuts deep. Lionel Messi had been at his father’s side in the buildup to the World Cup, a moment of quiet reassurance before the glare of global competition. Within days of scoring a hat-trick in Argentina’s opening match against Algeria, Messi was seen crying on the pitch—tears he later tied to “something unrelated to football” and “a few difficult, complicated days.” A family statement days later confirmed Jorge was undergoing treatment, clarifying the emotional strain behind the scenes.

Friends and former teammates remember Jorge as much more than a father—he was Lionel’s first manager, his closest adviser, and the quiet force behind every pivotal career move. From the early days at Newell’s Old Boys through the glittering years at Barcelona and beyond, Jorge was the steady presence in the dressing room, on the training ground, and in the private moments of doubt. “I always needed my dad’s approval, ever since I was a kid,” Messi once said. “After every match, I’d ask him what he thought of how I played.” Newell’s Old Boys, Messi’s boyhood club, paid tribute to Jorge as “a constant companion whose behind-the-scenes leadership was essential in backing every step of Lionel’s journey.”

The loss arrives at a delicate time for Messi, who only recently resumed playing for Inter Miami after the emotional highs and lows of the World Cup. His next matches will unfold under heightened scrutiny, his focus inevitably divided between sport and sorrow. But for a man who has always measured success in family first, the quiet dignity of Jorge’s presence will linger long after the final whistle.