While it seems far-fetched, there is a growing clamor for Argentina captain Lionel Messi to run for president.
The country’s men’s national football team won the recently concluded 2022 FIFA World Cup, and Messi’s popularity is stronger than ever. Now, his influence has reached beyond football, with some people pushing for the footballer to consider a career in public service.
According to Marca, Giacobbe & Asociados conducted a survey asking Argentina citizens if they would vote for the diminutive footballer in the off chance that he would run for the nation’s top political post.
Surprisingly, 43.7 percent of respondents confirmed that they would in fact place their confidence in Messi to lead their country. It’s a small majority compared to the 37.8 percent of Argentines who said that they would opt for another leader.
While not completely certain about choosing Messi, another 17.5 agreed to “consider” him as their choice. Meanwhile only 0.9% abstained from the vote.
What’s even more interesting is that Messi got more votes in the survey against actual politicians such as Javier Milei, Cristina Kirchner, Patricia Bulrich and Mauricio Macri.
Current Argentina president Alberto Fernandez only received a dismal 1.3 percent of the total votes. The exact number of respondents is unclear, and it is not proven to be representative of the real sentiments of the entire population of Argentina.
Could Messi occupy the Casa Rosada one day? It may seem absurd to some, but it is not impossible for a popular public figure to cross over into politics. Perhaps some of the most prominent examples would be former US President Ronald Reagan, who was a popular actor. Current Ukraine president Volodymyr Zelenskyy was a comedian and TV actor.
The Paris Saint-Germain forward has not expressed any intention of running for office. It is also unclear if he will move back to the country once he decides to end his professional football career. He has lived most of his life in Barcelona, and has previously stated his intention to return to the city to pursue an administrative role with the Blaugrana.
Source: ibtimes
