Translated from the original Spanish article. Read in Spanish
News published on October 24, 2026. The situation may have changed since then.
Three months ago, Spain beat Messi in a World Cup final. This Friday, Spain gave him a standing ovation.
Lionel Messi received the Princess of Asturias Award for Sports. But behind that ovation there's a story few people know.
The award
It's one of Spain's most prestigious honors. It's presented every year in Oviedo, and the winner receives a bronze sculpture designed by Joan Miró, weighing about eight kilos, and 50,000 euros.
This year, the jury, chaired by Paralympic champion Teresa Perales, chose Messi from 27 nominations, for two reasons: his talent and a career in which he has won more titles than any other player in history, and his charitable work, through his foundation, to give children with fewer resources access to education and health care.
He's also the first footballer to receive this award individually.
A trip for his father
On August 8, Jorge Messi, his father, died in Rosario at the age of 68. He was the one who took him to Barcelona when Leo was thirteen, and who managed his career for decades.
Messi said he reorganized his schedule to travel to Oviedo as a tribute to his father, who was very excited about this award. He arrived with Antonela Roccuzzo amid bagpipes and applause, and spent just 36 hours in the city.
"The game of ten"
On Thursday he met schoolchildren at Oviedo's Sports Palace. Tickets sold out in thirteen minutes. It was the closing of a project called "The game of ten": each class invented a set of ten football rules, inspired by Messi quotes, and played by them for ten days.
And Messi told them something nobody expected: that he would learn more from them in a school playground than they would from him.
The ceremony, without a speech
On Friday came the ceremony, at the Campoamor Theater. Princess Leonor presented him with the award, and the theater rose to its feet.
But Messi gave no speech: his foundation had already announced he wouldn't speak. Nor did he stay for the dinner, because he had to return to his sporting schedule. That same night, singer Patti Smith and astronaut Christina Koch were also honored.
The most curious part
In July, in the World Cup final, Spain beat Argentina 1-0 in extra time. It was Messi's sixth World Cup, and his second lost final.
Three months after beating him in the final, the Spanish public welcomed him as one of their own.
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Sources (in Spanish)
- Ceremonia del 23 de octubre de 2026: La Nación, MDZ, Infobae, ABC Color, Prensa Libre y Olympics.com.
- Dotación de 50.000 euros y escultura de Joan Miró: El Economista y Examedia.
- Jurado presidido por Teresa Perales: ClaroSports.
- Fallecimiento de Jorge Messi (8 de agosto de 2026): CNN en Español y ¡Hola!.
- Encuentro con escolares y «El juego del 10»: Fundación Princesa de Asturias, Infobae y teleSUR.
- Final del Mundial 2026: El Tiempo y Sports Illustrated.
Photos are from Wikimedia Commons under free licenses; the author and license are shown under each image.
