CELEBRITY
Messi dedicates long-awaited Copa America title to Maradona
Lionel Messi has dedicated Argentina’s Copa America triumph over Brazil to his family, his country and also the late idol Diego Maradona.
“I want to dedicate this success to my family, who have always given me the strength to continue, to my friends whom I love so much, to all the people who support us and above all to 45 millions Argentinians who have suffered so with this dreadful virus,” the Barcelona megastar wrote on Instagram.
Argentina is approaching a 100,000 Covid-19 death toll and weeks before the start of the Copa tournament, Buenos Aires refused to co-stage the event with Colombia owing to the surge in pandemic cases.
South American confederation Conmebol ultimately transferred hosting rights to Brazil at the last minute despite that country having seen more than half a million virus deaths, the second highest global tally after the United States.
Messi, 34, also paid tribute to the memory of Maradona, who died aged 60 last November, saying that “Diego was surely urging us on wherever he is”.
Argentina’s success over the Brazilians in Rio was not just Messi’s first major trophy for the Albiceleste but also his country’s first continental honour in 28 years.
Messi had been desperate to lead the side to glory after a series of disappointments both at World Cups and the Copa.
Given its battle against the further spread of the virus, Argentina has not organised celebrations to mark their title win.
After arriving back in the country on Sunday (July 11), the squad were briefly received at the country’s football federation headquarters and then dispersed for a pre-season break.
Despite the low-key welcome, thousands of fans took to the streets despite tight virus restrictions.
“To continue to party we must continue to take care of each other – let’s not forget we have a long way to go to get back to normality,” Messi warned.
“Use this happiness to gather strength to fight this virus together.”
–AFP
Portugal forward Cristiano Ronaldo crossed one billion followers across his social media accounts, aided by his newly-launched YouTube channel that has attracted more than 60 million subscribers in just over three weeks.
Ronaldo, who scored his 900th career goal last week to help Portugal beat Croatia 2-1 in the Nations League, is the first human being to reach a billion followers on social media, global media reports said.
“We’ve made history, one billion followers! This is more than just a number, it’s a testament to our shared passion, drive, and love for the game and beyond,” Ronaldo posted on X.
“You’ve been with me every step of the way, through all the highs and the lows. This journey is our journey… thank you for believing in me, for your support, and for being part of my life.”
The former Manchester United and Real Madrid player reached the milestone with over 639 million followers on Instagram, 170 million on Facebook and 113 million on X.
The 39-year-old topped Forbes’ list of highest-paid athletes this year, with off-field earnings of $60 million, boosted by his large social media following.
Ronaldo’s club Al-Nassr will host Al-Ahli in the Saudi Pro League on Friday.
-Reuters
Portugal’s Cristiano Ronaldo launched his YouTube channel on Wednesday and hundreds of thousands of subscribers signed up within a couple of hours.
The 39-year-old five-times Ballon D’Or winner plays for Saudi Arabian club Al Nassr.
“The wait is over. My @YouTube channel is finally here! SIUUUbscribe and join me on this new journey,” Ronaldo posted on his social media accounts.
A couple of hours after posting his first video, 1.69M subscribers had joined he channel.
Ronaldo has 112.5 million followers on the X platform, 170 million on Facebook and 636 million on Instagram.
The former Real Madrid and Manchester United player is preparing for his team’s Saudi Pro League opener against Al-Raed on Thursday.
-Reuters
Inter Miami will be the last club Argentina captain Lionel Messi plays for, the 36-year-old forward said on Wednesday, adding he feels “a little bit scared” at the thought of the day he decides to retire.
Messi, a World Cup winner with Argentina in 2022, has a contract with the Major League Soccer side until 2025 following his arrival last summer after a spell with French champions Paris St Germain.
“Inter Miami will be my last club. I love playing football. I enjoy everything even more because I am aware that there is less and less left,” Messi told ESPN.
“I’m not ready to leave football. I’ve done this all my life, I love playing football, I enjoy training, the day-to-day, the matches… And yes, there’s always a little bit of fear that it’s all over.”
The eight-time Ballon d’Or winner Messi is preparing with his national team to defend their Copa America title, with the tournament kicking off on June 20 in the United States.
Argentina will take on Canada in the opening match before facing Group A rivals Chile on June 25 and Peru four days later.
-Reuters
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