Topline<\/p>\n
Lionel Messi, one of soccer\u2019s wealthiest and most famous stars, has become the subject of conspiracy theories from some World Cup watchers who accuse FIFA of displaying favoritism toward him and the Argentine team, which advanced to the World Cup final by beating England on Wednesday.<\/p>\n
Messi is one of soccer’s wealthiest stars, with a net worth of $1.1 billion. (Photo by Marcelo Endelli\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n
Getty ImagesKey Facts<\/p>\n
Memes of Messi dressed up like a princess\u2014some AI-generated\u2014and cozying up to FIFA president Gianni Infantino have spread across social media, some of which have garnered hundreds of thousands of likes, as some World Cup viewers accuse the governing body of displaying favoritism toward the soccer legend.<\/p>\n
One post<\/a> on X has garnered more than 1 million views and 90,000 likes since Tuesday, accusing Infantino\u2014who is pictured smiling\u2014of being happy because he has, allegedly, \u201csuccessfully taken out all of Messi\u2019s competition.\u201d<\/p>\n A post<\/a> on TikTok, liked more than 2 million times, baselessly accuses Messi of offering to pay \u201cmillions\u201d for additional penalty kicks, adding to a chorus of social media users who have accused him of \u201ccheating.\u201d<\/p>\n Critics have referred to Messi as \u201cFIFA\u2019s princess\u201d as far back as the 2022 World Cup<\/a>, but allegations of favoritism picked up steam this year after Argentina won a hotly contested match with Egypt to win 3-2 in the final minutes of the game.<\/p>\n Others pointed out what was a historically easy path to the semifinals for Argentina, which didn\u2019t face any of the top 13 teams in the FIFA ranking prior to that match, though its comeback win over No. 4-ranked England took the steam out of some of those critiques.<\/p>\n Why Did The Argentina-Egypt Match Spark Favoritism Allegations?<\/p>\n Egypt\u2019s coach Hossam Hassan called<\/a> the game \u201cunfair\u201d and said his team \u201csuffered injustice\u201d after referees voided an Egyptian goal due to a foul and apparently declined to investigate a potential foul by Argentina. Hassan suggested<\/a> FIFA \u201cwanted to keep the world champion in the competition. Perhaps they wanted Messi to stay in the running.\u201d The Egyptian Football Association<\/a> also said after the game it \u201ccannot remain silent,\u201d saying \u201cseveral key incidents raised serious concerns and left profound questions about the consistency and fairness of decisions that directly influenced the course of the game.\u201d The Argentine Football Federation also said last week it was investigating<\/a> a potential hack of its systems after mass emails were sent to reporters calling for \u201cjustice\u201d for the Egyptian team. \u201cThe robbery will not go unnoticed,\u201d the email said, alleging Argentina won the game thanks to \u201ccorrupt calls.\u201d <\/p>\n contra<\/p>\n Lionel Scaloni, manager of Argentina\u2019s national team, last week dismissed<\/a> claims FIFA displays favoritism toward Messi and Argentina. \u201cHonestly, people have been saying those kinds of things about Argentina for a very long time,\u201d Scaloni said. \u201cSocial media magnifies everything. That’s where the debates begin. But there hasn’t been any favoritism.\u201d Pierluigi Collina<\/a>, FIFA\u2019s refereeing chief, also denied claims of favoritism in the Argentina-Egypt match, saying \u201cconstructive discussion about decisions will always be part of football, but unfounded allegations have \u200bno place in our sport.\u201d Collina said \u201cnobody can claim that FIFA refereeing can be influenced by \u2060anyone, not even by the FIFA president.\u201d<\/p>\n what to watch for<\/p>\n Argentina will face off against Spain in the World Cup final Sunday at 3 p.m. at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey.<\/p>\n forbes valuation<\/p>\n Messi is worth $1.1 billion, according to Forbes estimates<\/a>, making him one of soccer\u2019s wealthiest stars. He placed third on Forbes\u2019 list of the highest-paid athletes<\/a> of 2026, behind fellow soccer star Cristiano Ronaldo and boxer Canelo Alvarez. Messi ranked second on Forbes\u2019 2025 list<\/a> of the highest-paid soccer stars, again behind Ronaldo, with earnings of $130 million. He has brand deals with companies including Adidas, Lay\u2019s and Mastercard, and he launched a sports drink, M\u00e1s+ by Messi, in 2024. Messi signed with Major League Soccer team Inter Miami in 2023.<\/p>\n big number<\/p>\n 8. That\u2019s how many goals Messi has scored at the 2026 World Cup, tying him for top scorer, alongside France\u2019s Kylian Mbappe. <\/p>\n key background<\/p>\n FIFA is no stranger to corruption allegations, including some made against Infantino. Critics have lashed out at Infantino over his close ties to President Donald Trump, as the United States was one of this year\u2019s World Cup host countries. Controversy especially broke out after Trump called<\/a> Infantino before FIFA lifted U.S. striker Folarin Balogun\u2019s red card suspension. Barry Andrews, an Irish member of the European Parliament, slammed<\/a> FIFA as a \u201cprofoundly corrupt\u201d organization after Trump intervened. Sepp Blatter, a former FIFA president, called the organization a \u201cdictatorship\u201d in February, accusing Infantino of being \u201csubmissive\u201d to and currying favor with Trump. Blatter was FIFA\u2019s president when it became embroiled in a corruption scandal<\/a>, in which executives were charged for rigging World Cup host bids in exchange for bribes.<\/p>\n further reading<\/p>\n FIFA refereeing chief rejects claims of bias in Argentina’s win over Egypt<\/a> (Reuters)<\/p>\n