Lionel Messi was visibly emotional, shedding tears after seeming to sustain an injury around the 64th minute of Sunday's Copa America final between Argentina and Colombia.
Messi appeared to injure himself while chasing the ball, seemingly misplacing his footing before falling to the ground.
Colombian defender Johan Mojica rushed over to check on him, and both players promptly signaled to the sideline for trainers to assist.
Lionel Messi's untimely injury against Colombia
After a brief evaluation, Messi removed his right shoe and walked off the field with a limp. He handed his captain's armband to close friend Ángel Di María, who is playing in his final match before retiring, before being substituted by Nico Gonzalez.
TV cameras captured Messi sitting on the bench, visibly distraught with his face buried in his hands, deeply emotional. This was undoubtedly a disconcerting sight for Argentina fans, especially given the match's significance and the score remaining at 0-0.
Later, Messi was seen with ice on his severely swollen right ankle, temporarily offering some hope that the injury may not be as severe as feared.
While the severity of Messi's injury was not immediately clear, the global football superstar has not been fully healthy in this tournament. In the 36th minute, he beat Santiago Arias to the end line and attempted a cross into the box, but fell out of bounds.
Messi grimaced in pain, holding his lower right leg tightly and rolling on the ground. Trainers attended to him for a few minutes before helping him up. He moved slowly towards the sideline but eventually re-entered the game.
Messi and the injury bug
Argentina’s team captain Lionel Messi had been dealing with a leg injury and discomfort for much of the tournament, leading to his absence in Argentina's final group stage match. Nonetheless, he still attempted one shot in the first half on Sunday.
Lautaro Martinez clinched victory for La Celeste in extra time with a goal in the 112th minute. This achievement marked their first consecutive Copa America titles since 1993, positioned between their triumph at the 2022 World Cup. This maintains Argentina's reputation as a team to watch as they prepare for the 2026 World Cup.
It took them a goalless 90 minutes and a tremendous effort in extra time, but the Inter Milan star rose to the occasion when his number was called.
Argentina vs. Colombia game delays
Earlier, the Copa America final between Argentina and Colombia experienced a delay of over an hour on Sunday due to thousands of fans without tickets rushing security and attempting to enter the stadium by force, according to organizers.
Videos on social media showed security personnel engaging with fans running across concourses and attempting to breach the gates of Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Florida.
Reports indicated that security staff ejected several individuals from the stadium, and some players mentioned that their families were affected by the chaos and couldn't enter the venue.
Hard Rock Stadium is slated to host matches during the 2026 World Cup. CONMEBOL, South American football's governing body, postponed the start time three times: initially from 8:00 p.m. to 8:30 p.m., then to 8:45 p.m., and finally to 9:15 p.m., when the teams were able to proceed with the national anthems and commence the match.
Argentina matches the 2008-2012 Spain team as the only country to achieve such a dominant run. This victory also ends a remarkable 28-game unbeaten streak for Colombia.
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