Lionel Messi has opened up about the possibility of ending his football career after the death of his father, Jorge Messi, describing his loss as something he is still struggling to accept.
In an emotional tribute, the Argentina captain said he did not know how he would continue without the man who had been beside him throughout his career, from his earliest training sessions to the biggest moments of his footballing life.
“I don’t know what I’m going to do without you. I don’t know how to carry on,” Messi wrote. “I now have serious doubts about whether I’ll keep doing it for much longer.”
Jorge, 68, died last week after a long illness in Rosario, Argentina. He had been Messi’s agent since the forward was 14 and remained one of his closest advisers as he developed from a young talent into one of the most decorated footballers in history.
For Messi, football was inseparable from his relationship with his father. He recalled how Jorge would take him to training after finishing work, while his mother would step in when his father was unavailable.
“He took me to every training session as soon as he got home from work,” Messi said. “Obviously, you never missed a single match.”
Messi also reflected on the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, when Argentina lifted the trophy after beating France in the final. He said Jorge had repeatedly urged him to play at the tournament, despite his worsening health shortly before it began.
Messi recalled promising his father that Argentina would reach the final so that Jorge could travel to watch him. Although Argentina eventually won the tournament, Jorge was unable to be there.
Every match carried the weight of that absence. Messi said he would finish games expecting to receive his father's message, only to realise how serious his condition had become.
“I wanted to win it so I could bring it to you and show you another one,” he wrote.
Messi went on to lead Argentina to another World Cup final in 2026, but his side lost 1-0 to Spain. He returned to his club, Inter Miami, after the tournament and later travelled home with his family following Jorge’s death.
A private funeral for Jorge was held on Sunday at a cemetery in Perez, on the outskirts of Rosario.
Beyond football, Messi remembered his father as his dad, friend and agent, saying Jorge had always known what was best for him despite the disagreements they sometimes had.
“You were my dad, my friend and my agent,” Messi wrote. “You were always the person you needed to be in every moment.”
The death has left Messi confronting a future without the man who had shared nearly every stage of his journey.
He said Jorge’s greatest happiness had been seeing his family doing well and, quietly, watching him play.
Messi also vowed that his father’s influence would continue through the way he raises his own children.
“I’m going to miss you so much, but you’ll always be present, especially in the way I raise my children,” he said.
For a player whose career has been defined by an extraordinary bond with his family, Jorge’s death has brought a deeply personal question to the surface: how much longer can Messi continue playing without the person who has been there from the beginning?
“Why couldn’t you hold on just a little longer so we could finish it together?” Messi wrote.
He ended his tribute with a final message to his father: “Rest in peace and look after us from above, just as you did down here. Thank you for everything. I love you, Dad.”