Lionel Messi’s father and longtime agent, Jorge Messi, died last week in Rosario, Argentina, at age 68 after a long illness, sources confirmed [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6]. Jorge had managed Messi’s career since he was 14 years old [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 6].

Messi, 39, currently plays for Inter Miami in Major League Soccer under a contract lasting until 2028 [8, 3, 4, 5]. However, the football star posted an emotional tribute on social media on August 12, expressing deep doubts about how much longer he will continue his career following his father’s death [1, 2, 9, 4, 5, 10, 7, 6]. “I don't know what I'm going to do without you. I don't know how to carry on. I used to just play football, and now I'm really not sure if I'll carry on doing it for much longer,” Messi wrote [1].

Messi attended a private funeral in Rosario on August 9 or 10 before returning to the United States [3, 5, 6]. On August 12, he appeared as a substitute for Inter Miami in a Leagues Cup game against Leon [3]. His teammates and opponents acknowledged the difficulty of the moment. Inter Miami midfielder Yannick Bright said, "When I saw he was here, all I was thinking about was to give my 150% for him. It's a tough situation... we try to stay close to him and support him as much as we can" [3]. Leon’s coach Javier Gandolfi added, "Messi is human being that is different to the rest. Today he demonstrated once more what he's made of" [3].

Messi revealed that playing in the 2026 FIFA World Cup was partly to honor his father's wishes. He described how Jorge encouraged him to compete despite his worsening condition, saying, “You always asked me to play in the last World Cup and a few days before it started was when you got worse... Every time a match ended, I would wait and hope for your message” [2]. Messi broke down crying after scoring a hat-trick in the tournament’s opening match due to emotional struggles unrelated to football [2, 4, 7]. Argentina finished runners-up, losing 1-0 to Spain in extra time [2, 4, 5, 7, 6]. Messi said of the final, "My legs couldn't go on anymore... I never felt well... We weren't champions, but you don't know how much we enjoyed every match" [2, 4, 5, 10, 7, 6].

Messi pledged to honor his father’s memory by raising his own children the way Jorge raised him. "I'm going to miss you so much, but you will always be present, especially in the upbringing of my children," he said [2, 9, 4, 7].

Local Argentine media reported that Jorge Messi had cancer, though this has not been officially confirmed [10, 11, 12]. Inter Miami were eliminated in the group stage of the 2026 Leagues Cup, the first time since the tournament expanded in 2023 [3].

Messi’s next scheduled professional appearances remain under contract through 2028 with Inter Miami, though his future plans are uncertain following his father’s passing.