Following the passing of his father and agent Jorge, Argentina superstar Lionel Messi admitted he has serious doubts about continuing his playing career.
Argentina superstar Lionel Messi has stated he has "serious doubts" about continuing to play football for "much longer" following the death of his father and agent, Jorge Messi.
The 39-year-old eight-time Ballon d’Or winner shared the emotional message on social media after his father passed away last week at the age of 68, with local media reporting he had been suffering from cancer. "I don’t know what I’ll do without you, I don’t know how to go on. I just played football, and now I have serious doubts about continuing to do so for much longer," wrote Messi, whose contract with Major League Soccer outfit Inter Miami runs until the end of the 2028 season.
Reflecting on his father's absence during the 2026 World Cup, Messi shared his first public comments since Argentina's 1–0 loss to Spain in the final in New Jersey. "I kept telling you we would reach the final so you could make the trip," Messi wrote. "We made it to the final, but you couldn’t be there. I wanted to win it to bring it to you and show you a new one. I couldn’t; my legs just gave out. This time I tried to push past my physical limits, but I couldn’t. I never felt right."
Messi praised his father's pivotal role throughout his career, writing, "You were a father, a friend, and an agent. You were always exactly who you needed to be in every moment, and you never put a foot wrong." During the tournament, Messi's family had asked the media for "humanity" amid health rumors, and Messi himself burst into tears after scoring against Algeria in a group match, later acknowledging he was dealing with "a situation outside of sports."
On Sunday, August 9, 2026, Messi bid farewell to his father during a private ceremony in Perez, adjacent to Rosario, attended by close family and a few Argentina teammates. Messi subsequently returned to the United States on Tuesday night.
Reporting sourced from The Hindu Football. Photo courtesy The Hindu Football.