Joan Laporta fires back at Victor Font for exploiting Lionel Messi legacy during heated Barcelona presidential election debate

Joan Laporta and Lionel Messi are once again at the center of a heated Barcelona debate. Just days before the club’s presidential election, Laporta has publicly accused rival Victor Font of using Messi’s name to win votes. The current FC Barcelona president believes Messi’s legacy should be respected, not used as a political tool during the election campaign. The vote for the next Barcelona president is scheduled for March 15, 2026, with Joan Laporta and Victor Font competing for the position. The debate around Messi has grown again after former Barcelona manager Xavi Hernandez claimed that Messi almost returned to the club in 2023.

According to Xavi, the move was stopped by Laporta himself. Meanwhile, Victor Font has been strongly criticizing Laporta’s leadership and promising to repair Barcelona’s relationship with Messi if he wins the election. With emotions running high, Messi’s legacy has become a major talking point among Barcelona supporters. As the election approaches and Barcelona prepare to face Sevilla on March 15, the political battle inside the club is becoming just as intense as the action on the pitch.

Joan Laporta and Victor Font clash over Lionel Messi’s role in Barcelona presidential election debate

The controversy started when Xavi Hernandez revealed that Lionel Messi was close to returning to Barcelona in 2023. In an interview with La Vanguardia, via GOAL, Xavi said talks had progressed before the plan was suddenly stopped.

Xavi Hernandez said:

“The president isn’t telling the truth there either. Leo was signed. In January 2023, after winning the World Cup, we got in touch, and he told me he was excited about coming back, and I saw it. We talked until March, and I told him, ‘Okay, when you give me the OK, I’ll tell the president because I see it as a good move from a footballing perspective.”

He added, “Then what happened? The president started negotiating the contract with Leo’s father, and we had La Liga’s approval, but it was the president who threw everything out. Did he explain why? Laporta told me, and I quote, that if Leo came back, he was going to wage war against him and that he couldn’t allow it.”

These comments quickly became part of the election debate. Victor Font, a Catalan fintech entrepreneur and one of Laporta’s main challengers, used the situation to criticize the current president.

Speaking about Messi’s importance to the club, Font said, “Saying that Messi is the past is undermining the best player in history. Leo Messi is present and future. We will offer to make him our president of honour. Hansi Flick and the sporting staff will decide how his career would end. Three days from now, when we win the elections, the reconciliation with Leo Messi will be a reality. We will start a new project alongside Messi’s hand. We are losing so much money by not selling Messi’s image like they do with Jordan.”

However, Joan Laporta responded strongly and accused Font of using Messi’s name for political gain. Laporta insisted the club should focus on its current progress instead.

Laporta said, “Barcelona fans want to talk about the present, with Lamine Yamal, [Pau] Cubarsi and Flick… not Messi. Full respect for Messi, he deserves a statue alongside [Johan] Cruyff when the Camp Nou is completed and at full capacity. But his name does not deserve to be exploited.”

While the debate continues, Messi’s legacy at Barcelona remains unmatched. The Argentine star played for the club from 2004 to 2021, scoring 672 goals and providing 303 assists in 778 appearances. During that time, he helped Barcelona win 34 trophies, including 10 LaLiga titles and four UEFA Champions League titles.

Messi left Barcelona in 2021 because of the club’s financial problems and joined Paris Saint-Germain before moving to Inter Miami in 2023, where he still plays today. Even years after his exit, Messi continues to influence conversations around the club. And with the election just hours away, his name has once again become one of the biggest talking points in Barcelona politics.



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