Lionel Messi scored a hat-trick in the first match of Argentina’s World Cup title defense, but the soccer icon had other things on his mind.
Lionel Messi gets emotional during the first match of the 2026 World Cup (Image: Robbie Jay Barratt – AMA/Getty Images)
Lionel Messi became emotional after scoring at the World Cup because his father Jorge is suffering from serious health problems, sources said. The 38-year-old, despite his age, inspired Argentina to an important victory in their first match of the tournament.
There is a lot of pressure on the Inter Miami midfielder as his home country is the defending champions. He scored three big goals for Argentina and ensured that their World Cup title defense got off to a perfect start.
But during the match, he seemed to have something else on his mind. When he scored his first goal for Argentina in a 3-0 win against Algeria, he started crying on the pitch.
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Asked why he was so emotional after the match, he said: “No, to be honest, it has nothing to do with sports. The last few days have been complicated and difficult.”
He added: “It’s been a difficult and complicated day, but I’m grateful to the whole squad and to all my teammates, because as always they were always there for me and gave me a lot of strength to be okay. That’s all.”
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Shortly thereafter, sports reporter Eduardo Feynman revealed on Radio Mitre, one of the most listened to stations in the country, that his father was not feeling well. He said, “This has to do with his father. His father is not in good health. He has been in poor health for quite some time since last year, for several months.”
“And this week there have been some situations that have slightly worsened his health and Messi is going through this inner conflict. In other words, just like any other human being.”
Jorge had a huge influence on Messi’s career (Image: NurPhoto via Getty Images)
Jorge reportedly endured a “medical episode” at home in January, which resulted in him going to the hospital. Additionally, he has reportedly undergone cardiovascular and neurological tests, but no diagnosis has been made yet.
Messi’s father has had a huge influence on his football career and continues to work with his son behind the scenes. Jorge continues to work as the eight-time Ballon d’Or winner’s agent and business manager.
Messi has three other siblings born to his mother Celia Cuccitini and Jorge. His parents married in 1978 and are still together, splitting their lives between Miami and Rosario.
It was an emotional match for Messi, who was seen breaking down in tears on the pitch (Image: Ulrik Pedersen/NurPhoto/Shutterstock)
Before Messi’s football career and starting running his business empire, Jorge worked as a steel manufacturer. If Messi’s father had been able to watch the game, he would have seen his famous son tie Miroslav Klose on the World Cup all-time scoring list with 16 goals.
The Argentina captain found the net four times, but the first was disallowed for offside as the ball deflected in front of the Algerian backline before it could be played.
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