Awarded by US President Biden
World star Messi receives freedom medal
January 4, 2025 – 4:24 p.mReading time: 1 min.
He has already collected numerous awards and trophies. But now Lionel Messi is receiving a special honor. It comes from the US President.
Lionel Messi is honored with one of the USA’s highest civilian awards. The eight-time world footballer and Argentine world champion will receive the “Presidential Medal of Freedom” on Saturday. The White House announced that President Joe Biden will award the Presidential Medal of Freedom in a ceremony to Messi and 18 other figures from the worlds of politics, sports, entertainment, civil rights and science.
Other award winners include basketball legend Earvin “Magic” Johnson. According to the White House announcement, the honor is given to individuals who have made “exemplary contributions to the prosperity, values or security of the United States, to world peace or to other significant social, public or private endeavors.”
The White House wrote explicitly about Messi that he was the “most decorated player in the history of professional football. Through the Leo Messi Foundation, he supports health and education programs for children around the world and is a Unicef Goodwill Ambassador.”
Messi has been playing for Inter Miami since 2023. In his first full season in Major League Soccer, the 37-year-old led the team from Florida to win the MLS Supporters’ Shield, which is awarded to the team with the highest points in the main round. Despite these successes, Miami was eliminated early in the play-offs. Messi was still able to impress: with 20 goals, he was named Most Valuable Player (MVP) in the league.
In the summer, Messi will also compete with Inter Miami at the Club World Cup in the USA.