Jorge Messi, father and longtime agent of football superstar Lionel Messi, has died at the age of 68.
The death was announced on Saturday by Newell’s Old Boys, the Argentine club where Lionel Messi began his football journey, while Argentine media reported that Jorge died on Friday at a hospital in Rosario.
Paying tribute to the late father of the Argentina captain, Newell’s Old Boys said his presence and support were central to his son’s extraordinary career.
“His constant companionship and behind-the-scenes leadership were essential in backing every step of Lionel,” the club said in a social media post.
The Spanish Football Federation also expressed condolences to the Messi family, extending its support to Lionel and his relatives during their period of mourning.
“On behalf of Spanish football, we wish to convey all our love and affection to Lionel and his loved ones during this time of deep sorrow,” the federation said.
Jorge Messi played a pivotal role in his son’s development from a young footballer in Rosario to one of the most decorated players in the history of the sport.
A former metal factory worker, he was Lionel’s first coach in Argentina and later accompanied him when the teenager moved to Spain to pursue his football career at Barcelona.
In 2000, Jorge left his job, wife and three other children in Argentina to accompany 13-year-old Lionel to Barcelona.
The move was difficult for both father and son.
Messi later recalled that they struggled emotionally during their early days in Spain, despite trying to conceal their difficulties from each other.
“When we arrived in Barcelona, I used to lock myself in my room to cry alone, and my father did the same — either without me seeing him or thinking I didn’t see him,” Messi recalled.
“We pretended we were both fine, but we were struggling.”
The teenager eventually settled into life at Barcelona, and Jorge became an increasingly important figure in managing his son’s career.
Messi later recalled how his father gave him the choice of returning to Argentina when the challenges became overwhelming.
“When things were tough, my father even asked me what I wanted to do, whether I wanted to keep going or go back home. I wanted to continue, so he stayed with me, ” he said.
Jorge subsequently helped finalise his son’s first contract with Barcelona and became his agent and representative, later overseeing his professional affairs during his spells at Paris Saint-Germain and Inter Miami.
Despite his prominent role in the career of one of football’s biggest stars, Jorge largely stayed away from the spotlight.
Messi frequently acknowledged his father’s influence, describing him as a demanding critic whose advice pushed him to improve.
“My father helped me enormously. He is very critical of me. That made me always want to push myself further,” Messi said in a 2022 interview.
Jorge also spoke of the emotional connection he had with his son and his attachment to Lionel’s football career.
“The day Leo stops playing, I think a dream will shatter for me, and I won’t watch football anymore,” he told German magazine Kicker in 2013.
Jorge Messi’s career as his son’s representative was not without controversy.
In 2013, Spanish authorities accused Jorge and Lionel Messi of using a network of companies in several countries to manage the footballer’s image rights and evade taxes between 2007 and 2009.
The case was eventually resolved in 2017 after the payment of multi-million-euro fines.
A separate case involving Jorge, Lionel and the Leo Messi Foundation was opened in Spain in 2019 over allegations including tax offences, fraud and money laundering. The case was dismissed in 2021.
Jorge’s death comes after his family had earlier asked the media to show restraint and “humanity” amid reports and speculation about his health.
He is survived by his wife, Celia Cuccittini, and their children, including Lionel, Rodrigo, Matías and María Sol.
For Lionel Messi, who has spent much of his life in the global spotlight, Jorge was more than an agent.
He was his first coach, closest adviser and one of the central figures in the journey that transformed a young boy from Rosario into one of football’s greatest names.
