Messi Meets Trump and Argentina Is Divided

Lionel Messi, perhaps the world’s most famous soccer player, never publicly talks about politics.

He maintained that silence during a meeting with President Trump last week, but that did not prevent the Argentine star from being dragged into a heated political debate at home.

Mr. Messi smiled sheepishly at a White House reception for his U.S.-based team, Inter Miami, after Mr. Trump seized the occasion to talk about the demolition of Iran’s military and regime change in Cuba, turning a routine celebration of Inter Miami’s 2025 MLS Cup victory into a polarizing firestorm.

President Javier Milei of Argentina, a key ally of the Trump administration, applauded a handshake between his country’s most celebrated soccer hero and Mr. Trump. At the same time, Trump critics accused Mr. Messi of cozying up to the polarizing U.S. president.

“It felt like a slap in the face,” Ángel Cappa, a former Argentine soccer coach and longtime commentator, wrote in a blog post titled, “What a shame, Messi.”

Throughout his two-decade soccer career, Mr. Messi has taken pains to stay out of politics, and he has not commented on the White House event. Representatives of Inter Miami did not respond to a request for comment.

Some American sports teams and athletes have skipped visiting the White House to avoid meeting with presidents they don’t agree with or being drawn into the kind of scrutiny Mr. Messi has faced.