Lionel Messi has posted an emotional tribute to his late father Jorge, who passed away in Rosario, Argentina, on August 8 at the age of 68.
Jorge Messi had battled a long undisclosed illness that, according to his son, “took a turn for the worse” right before the start of the 2026 World Cup.
The heartfelt letter, shared on Messi’s Instagram account on August 12 and translated from Spanish, revealed deep personal uncertainty about the footballer’s future.
“Dad, I still can’t believe you’re gone,” Messi began. “It hasn’t sunk in, I don’t want it to sink in. It’s so hard to imagine that I won’t see you again, that we won’t talk anymore.”
The 39-year-old Inter Miami star acknowledged the painful reality of his father’s suffering while expressing how devastating the loss has felt so soon.
“I know you were suffering and that this is for the best, but you left too soon,” he continued. “We still had so much left to enjoy together.”
Jorge Messi had encouraged his son to participate in the 2026 World Cup despite his declining health, though his condition prevented him from attending any matches during the tournament.
Argentina reached the final but ultimately fell to Spain 1-0 in a match that required extra time, with Messi reflecting deeply on his father missing that occasion.
“We made it to the final, but you couldn’t be there,” Messi wrote. “You have no idea how much we enjoyed every match. Once again, you were right: I had to be there and play.”
The most striking revelation in the letter was Messi’s candid admission about his own footballing future, casting doubt over whether he will continue much longer.
“I don’t know what I’m going to do without you,” he wrote. “I don’t know how to keep going. All I ever did was play soccer, and now I have serious doubts about whether I’ll keep doing it for much longer.”
Jorge had served as his son’s agent since Lionel was just 14 years old, guiding him from a young prospect in Rosario to one of the greatest players in football history.
Messi described his father as an ever-present figure throughout his career, rarely offering lavish praise but suffering and celebrating every moment alongside him.
“You never missed a single match,” Messi wrote. “How you suffered watching me, and how you enjoyed it—even if you rarely heaped praise on me.”
The letter also touched on Jorge’s lasting influence beyond football, with Messi linking his own approach to fatherhood directly to the values instilled by his parents.
“You’re always going to be present, especially in my sons’ education, because I teach them and educate them the same way you and mom did with me,” Messi wrote.
Jorge Messi began his working life as a supervisor at a metal factory in Rosario before dedicating himself fully to his son’s extraordinary footballing journey.
Lionel Messi sits second on the all-time list for World Cup goals with 21, and remains one of the defining figures in the history of the sport.
He led Argentina to the World Cup title in 2022 and came agonisingly close to back-to-back titles in 2026, also narrowly missing out on the Golden Boot, which France’s Kylian Mbappé claimed in the third-place match against England.
Messi holds a contract with Inter Miami through the end of the 2028 season and has not announced his retirement, though his emotional letter leaves his playing future genuinely uncertain.
