Lionel Messi skips Biden Medal of Freedom ceremony as Clinton, Soros award outrage

Soccer legend Lionel Messi received the Presidential Medal of Freedom on Saturday, but he did not appear in person at the White House to receive the medal from President Biden. Messi was one of 19 recipients of the award, alongside NBA Hall of Famer Magic Johnson.

According to USA Today, Messi’s management team and his professional team, Inter Miami, informed the White House in advance that he would not be able to attend the ceremony due to scheduling conflicts.

Messi arrived in the United States in 2023 to join Major League Soccer’s Inter Miami, part of one of the biggest superstar signings in the league’s 31-year history. Until now, Messi had only played in European leagues and for Argentina for most of his career.

“Leo Messi is the most decorated player in the history of professional football. He supports health and education programs for children around the world through his Messi Foundation and is a UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador,” announced a White House spokesperson as Biden held the medal.

Major League Soccer released a brief statement on social media congratulating Messi on the award. Messi himself did not acknowledge the award with a social media post at the time of publication. According to USA Today, the star said “he is deeply honored and it is a profound privilege to receive this recognition.”

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The medal is the nation’s highest civilian honor, awarded to individuals who have made “exemplary contributions to the prosperity, values, or security of the United States, world peace, or other societal, public or significant private assets,” according to the White House.

Biden’s re-election campaign cited Messi’s arrival in Major League Soccer as a catalyst for soccer’s growing prominence with the American public, during the 2024 Copa America soccer tournament in Atlanta in June.

After Messi led Argentina to the World Cup title in December 2022, Biden jokingly wrote, “You know, I think Messi might have a future,” in a congratulatory message.

However, as Messi was absent, Saturday’s ceremony also sparked controversy. News that Biden The decision to award the medal to former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and left-wing billionaire George Soros sparked massive outrage on social media and backlash, particularly from prominent conservative figures.

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Critics have pointed to Clinton’s handling of the war in Libya and the attack on U.S. government facilities in Benghazi, Libya, as well as her controversial private email server for government business, which prompted the former James Comey, Director of the FBI publicly that Clinton had mishandled classified information.

The award to Soros, a Democratic megadonor, has been criticized because of the billionaire’s past campaign funding from progressive prosecutors who have been light on crime, which they say has led to crime waves in the blue cities.

“Seriously, two of the worst people on earth,” online commentator Blake Habyan wrote of Clinton and Soros.

Messi has not expressed any significant political beliefs during his career.

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As of February 2024, Messi did not play an exhibition match in Hong Kong, remaining on the bench in a match between Inter Miami and a local team. After his refusal to play, one of Argentina’s friendly matches, which was to be played in China in March, was canceled.

China’s state-run newspaper Global Times published an editorial putting forward an evidence-free “theory” suggesting that Messi’s actions were “politically motivated” and that “external forces” wanted to embarrass Hong Kong. But Messi insisted his decision not to take part in the match was not politically motivated at the time.

“I heard people say that I didn’t want to play (in Hong Kong) for political reasons and many other reasons which are totally false,” Messi said in Spanish in a video subtitled in Chinese and English. English. “If that had been the case, I wouldn’t have even traveled to Japan or visited China as many times as I did.”

Widely regarded as one of the greatest footballers of all time, Messi, 37, has set numerous individual records with eight Ballons d’Or and been named the world’s best player eight times by FIFA. He is the most decorated player in the history of professional football, having won 45 team trophies, including four UEFA Champions Leagues, two Copa Americas and one FIFA World Cup.

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