What can Newell’s Old Boys offer to Lionel Messi?

Although he never played a single game for the senior team, Lionel Messi’s affection for boyhood club Newell’s Old Boys is well known. One of the stands at the team’s stadium is named in his honor, but will Messi ever return to play in front of it?

Maybe, if an ambitious attempt from the Argentinian team comes to pass. The Rosario-based club have revealed a far-reaching plan designed to tempt the veteran superstar back to his hometown at the end of his glittering career.

Speaking to Argentinian publication TN, Newell’s vice president Juan Manuel Medina explained: “We are working on Leo playing for Newell’s in the first half of 2027.”

“It’s a project that goes beyond Newell’s. It’s a project for the city of Rosario, the province, and Argentine football. It all depends on what we can offer in terms of infrastructure and a competitive sports program.”

Will Messi really return to Argentina?

Messi’s outlandish talent was first identified while playing in the Newell’s Old Boys academy as a child, scoring an astonishing 234 goals for the youth team before joining Barcelona’s famed La Masia at the age of 13.

Now 38, Messi now plays for MLS team Inter Miami and recently signed a three-year contract extension. However a change in the MLS league structure in 2027 might give Newell’s the chance to secure his services on a short-term deal.

Next year MLS will switch from its current calendar-year structure to a September - May schedule that aligns with the top European leagues. As part of that change the first half of 2027 will be a ‘transition season’ for MLS teams, potentially opening a window for Messi to return to Newell’s without disrupting a full MLS season.

It’s an ambitious plan, and one that would likely need a lot of improvement at Newell’s to tempt Messi back to his homeland. Having finished bottom of Argentina’s Primera Division in 2025 the club would need to show that a competitive team is in place to surround Messi.