Lionel Messi and the Argentinian FA are being sued for alleged fraud and a breach of contract. Argentina was scheduled to play in two exhibitions this past October, where Messi was reportedly obligated to play at least 30 minutes in both. But he wound up watching them from the stands, eventually leading to this lawsuit.
“VID, a Miami-based company that puts on large-scale music and sporting events, according to court docs obtained by TMZ Sports, filed a lawsuit against the 38-year-old footballer and the Argentine Football Association on Tuesday in South Florida, alleging fraud and breach of contract, saying they were burned out of millions of dollars,” TMZ said. “In August, VID says they struck a deal and ultimately paid the AFA $7 million for the exclusive rights to two exhibition match-ups scheduled for October — Argentina vs. Venezuela, and Argentina vs. Puerto Rico.”
TMZ did reach out to Messi’s team and the AFA for comment on the matter. At the time of their report, there was no response.
Argentina won both friendlies in question. First was a 1-0 victory over Venezuela, with a goal being scored by Giovani Lo Celso. They then put six past Puerto Rico in a game originally scheduled to be in Chicago. But VID moved everything down to the Miami area.
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Argentina set to play pre-World Cup matches at Auburn, Texas A&M
With the World Cup coming to the United States, Argentina will come in as the title holders. To fully prepare, two pre-tournament matches will take place at SEC football stadiums. The Auburn Tigers and Texas A&M Aggies will host the Argentines at Jordan-Hare Stadium and Kyle Field, respectively.
Naturally, questions about the status of Messi popped up once the news was announced. Both believe Messi will be on the field, giving Tiger and Aggie fans a unique experience.
“I don’t want to make any promises, but we do anticipate him being a part, yes,” Texas A&M athletics director Trev Alberts said, per Travis Brown. “I’m not sure exactly what the extent of what that looks like, but yes, we do anticipate him being a part of it. Again, I’m not a soccer expert. I know what they’re doing is getting ready for the Road to 26, right, so there’s different components of how they’re building. While no promises are being made, we do anticipate, at some sort of level, he is a part of this, yes.”
