Jorge Messi dead at 68: Tributes pour in for father of Lionel after lengthy battle with health problems

Lionel Messi's father Jorge has died at the age of 68, two months on from the family revealing he had been rushed to hospital with an ongoing 'health situation'.

The news was first reported by local media in Argentina, and has since been confirmed by Messi's first team, Newell's Old Boys, in a statement.

Jorge reportedly died in a hospital in Rosario, close to the family home, at around 10pm local time on Friday August 7.

In the statement, Newell's Old Boys, wrote in Spanish: 'Club Atletico Newell's Old Boys bids farewell with deep sorrow and grief to Jorge Messi, who passed away at the age of 68 in the city of Rosario.

'Recognized leproso fan, businessman, and father of the Argentine national team captain, Lionel Andrés Messi. Jorge was the pillar and the person who supported with vision, rigor, and affection the career of the greatest player of all time alongside his wife, Celia Cuccittini.

'His constant companionship and behind-the-scenes leadership were essential in backing every step of Lionel, from his beginnings at Malvinas to the pinnacle of world football glory. Thank you for teaching him to love these colors.

'The Board of Directors, members, athletes, and the entire leprosa family embrace with affection Celia, Lionel, Rodrigo, Matías, and María Sol, and all their loved ones and close ones in this difficult moment. Farewell forever, leproso.'

The Daily Mail has reached out to Inter Miami and the Messi family for a further statement, and no cause of death has yet been revealed.

Football legend Messi was extremely close to his father, who also operated as his agent and de facto business manager throughout his career, overseeing his son's multi-million dollar empire off the pitch.

In recent months, though, the patriarch of the family had been dealing with an as-yet-unconfirmed medical issue that had seen him taken to hospital in his home country.

His illness first came to light when Lionel, 39, cried on the pitch at the World Cup in a rare public display of emotion.

After scoring a hat-trick against Algeria in Argentina's opening group game in Kansas City, Messi was questioned by journalists and said: 'No, honestly it's something completely unrelated to sports. It's been a few difficult days, complicated.'

Just hours later, journalist Eduardo Feinmann explained the reason for the tears in an interview on Radio Mitre, one of the country's most listened-to stations.

'This has to do with his father. His father is not in good health,' he said. 'For quite some time now, several months, since last year.

'And this week there were some situations that slightly worsened his health, and Messi is going through this internal struggle. In other words, like any human being.'

It has since been reported that Jorge suffered a 'medical episode' at his home in January of this year, and he was hospitalized as a result.

In the aftermath, he was said to have undergone cardiovascular and neurological tests, but no official diagnosis was shared by the family, who sought to keep Jorge's health out of the media.

Jorge's health became headline news again in June, when a broadcaster in Argentina falsely claimed he had died - before later issuing an emotional apology and stepping down from her job.

Lionel is the third of four children of Jorge and his wife Celia Cuccittini, and the pair remained together until his death.

They married in 1978 and split their time between Rosario and Miami, where their footballing superstar son currently plays for David Beckham's Inter Miami in MLS.

Before becoming Lionel's agent, Jorge worked for a steel manufacturer in Villa Constitucion, meeting his wife as a young man in Rosario - where the family then grew up.

Messi has two older brothers, Rodrigo and Matias, and a younger sister, Maria Sol.

Jorge has been at Messi's side throughout his historic career, which began in Argentina with Newell's Old Boys, before he moved to Spain to join Barcelona's famed La Masia academy in 2000.

He became the greatest of all-time in an incredible 21 years in Barcelona, before stunning the world with a move to Paris Saint-Germain - orchestrated by Jorge - in 2021.

After two seasons in the French capital, he moved to MLS and Inter Miami, where he remains to this day at the age of 39.

While Lionel's career has been magical on the pitch, it has not been without controversy off it, with Jorge famously by his son's side throughout his tax fraud case in 2016.

The pair sat together in front of the court, with Jorge in his role as his son's business manager, with the prosecution alleging that Messi failed to properly pay tax on income from his image rights between 2007 and 2009.

Ultimately, both father and son were convicted of three tax offenses, initially each receiving suspended 21-month prison sentences.

Jorge's sentence was subsequently reduced to 15 months upon review in 2017 by Spain's Supreme Court, with the pair also hit with substantial fines.