Saudi Arabian ambassador Lionel Messi suffered the ignominy of being booed by fans of the country he promotes in Argentina’s embarrassing defeat on Tuesday.
Argentina lost 2-1 to Saudi Arabia in their Group C opening clash in Qatar in one of the greatest upsets in World Cup history.
Messi had given his country the lead from the spot, before Argentina then had three goals ruled out for offside in the first half – with two Lautaro Martinez strikes and one Messi finish disallowed.
Saudi Arabia then produced a stunning comeback in the second half thanks to goals from Saleh Al Shehri & Salem Al Dawsari to secure a memorable win.
And Messi, who, according to The Athletic, signed a lucrative £25m a year deal to promote the kingdom in May of this year, was far from his best and was booed by Saudi Arabia fans during the clash.
Lionel Messi was booed by Saudi Arabia fans despite being an ambassador for the Arab state
Saudi Arabia secured a memorable World Cup win over Argentina on Tuesday in Qatar
To make matters even worse, the defeat to the Arab state added further embarrassment to one of its own ambassadors.
The booing came after the aforementioned report in The Athletic revealed how Messi could reportedly find himself at the centre of a battle for the 2030 World Cup between his native Argentina and Saudi Arabia.
With the current World Cup underway in Qatar and the 2026 World Cup set to be held in the United States, Canada and Mexico, the bidding for the 2030 edition opened up in June this year.
There is currently just one confirmed bid from Spain, Portugal and Ukraine, but it is expected that two rival proposals will be announced in the near future.
One of these is a South American joint initiative between Argentina, Uruguay, Paraguay and Chile – while the other is a bid comprising of Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Greece.
The use of multiple countries is due to the fact that the World Cup will become a 48-team tournament from the next edition in 2026, with the decision over who will host the 2030 edition to be made in 2024.
They fought back from 1-0 down to win 2-1 in one of the greatest upsets ever at the World Cup
Messi had earlier put Lionel Scaloni’s side into the lead after scoring from the spot
Joyous Saudi Arabian fans further embarrassed Messi by giving him a frosty reception
The bid from the South American nations was first revealed in 2017 when, before a fixture between Argentina and Uruguay, Messi and his former Barcelona team-mate Luis Suarez posed together ahead of kick off.
Suarez wore a Uruguay shirt with the No 20 on, while Messi posed with an Argentina No 30 shirt on – in a show of solidarity between the nations in regards to their World Cup bid.
With the pair two of the most iconic South American footballers of all-time, it was believed that they would play major roles in this potential bid.
When discussing the South American efforts to host the tournament in eight years time, it’s co-ordinator Fernando Marin told The Athletic: ‘A South American bid for 2030 is very strong.
‘The region is a generator of talent that expresses itself all over the world.
‘Additionally, on the 100th anniversary of the first World Cup in Uruguay in 1930, it would be a fitting location.’
Messi and Luis Suarez are expected to be a key part of the South American bid for 2030
Furthermore, in 2018, Marin had spoken of the role one of the world’s greatest-ever footballers would play within the bid. He told AFP: ‘Messi will join us in this initiative, and Suarez certainly. We told him (Messi) about our aims, and he feels it’s doable.
‘He showed great desire to help us. He will surely be the flag-bearer for the World Cup.’
However, questions arose in May 2022, when Messi then signed the reported lucrative £25m per year agreement to promote Saudi Arabia.
This agreement was mainly centred around promoting tourism within the kingdom, but the national objective of the country is tied around ‘Vision 2030’.
The Vision 2030 is described by the Saudi government as ‘a unique transformative economic and social reform blueprint that is opening up to the world’.
A major part of this vision is reportedly heavily tied to hosting the 2030 World Cup (in collaboration with Greece and Egypt).
Promoting tourism in the country also does much to aid this whole strategy implemented by the kingdom.
Messi signed a reported £25m a year deal to promote Saudi Arabia in May of this year
He was first promoted as a tourism ambassador for Saudi Arabia when he visited in May
Saudi Arabia’s involvement in sport has been gradually increasing over recent years. This has been seen with the state’s sovereign wealth fund PIF taking over at Newcastle, the LIV Golf breakway tour, along with hosting Formula 1 races and heavyweight boxing clashes within the kingdom.
Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman was also pictured sitting next to Fifa President Gianni Infantino at the opening match of the World Cup between Qatar and Ecuador on Sunday, while the pair were seen talking at the G20 summit last week in Bali – raising hopes that they may be successful in their 2030 World Cup bid.
Messi was first promoted as a tourism ambassador for the kingdom when he visited Jeddah in May.
At the time, Saudi minister of tourism Ahmed al-Khateeb tweeted: ‘This is not his first visit to the kingdom and it will not be the last.’ The Visit Saudi website now also has a specific Messi page.
FIFA president Gianni Infantino (second right) was pictured next to Saudi Crown Prince Mohamed bin Salman (far right) at the opening game of the World Cup between Qatar and Ecuador
Messi also has links to a Saudi figure named Turki Al-Sheikh, who is reportedly a close adviser to Crown Prince Mohamed bin Salman
The PSG star also has links to a Saudi figure named Turki Al-Sheikh, who is reportedly a close adviser to Mohamed bin Salman and is the chairman of the Saudi General Entertainment Authority.
Within this role, his remit is to promote social and economic growth within Saudi Arabia.
Messi has sent messages to Al-Sheikh on social media and even publicly wished him happy birthday.
When contacted within the aforementioned report in The Athletic, Marin remained steadfast in his belief that Messi would still be a key figure in the South American bid for 2030.
He said: ‘Messi has a unique power on and off the field. He has grown in a superlative way.
‘Messi is a brand in himself and a very powerful one. He is a brand for all of football, not for states. He will be a fundamental piece of a South American bid for 2030.’
It remains to be seen how heavily he will be involved in a potential Saudi bid for the 2030 edition, but by promoting the country and tourism particularly – he has potential links to a rival bid to his home nation.