Lionel Messi And Cristiano Ronaldo sit away from each other. Eyes fix on the chess pieces in the suitcase. Both thoughts remain in currency. Hair is sitting. They wear sweaters or turtlenecks and jeans. And all this for Messi (35) with Argentina and Ronaldo (37) with Portugal shortly before the start of the World Cup.

advertisement

“iconic. Two football benchmarks of recent years united,” Argentine sports newspaper wrote ole Immediately on Saturday. Within three hours, Ronaldo had more than 15.5 million likes via Instagram, with Messi getting around 13 million. Commenting on the photo, both wrote, “Winning is in the mind.” This is a shot taken by American star photographer Annie Leibovitz for a French luxury goods company.

A picture which also acquires special charm through the accompanying circumstances. Messi and Ronaldo are already legends of the game but have never won the World Cup. The tournament in Qatar will probably be the last chance for both of them to win football’s most prestigious trophy. Messi had already announced recently USA, Mexico and Canada no longer want to be on the pitch at the 2026 World Cup, Ronaldo’s counterpart will turn 41 in the summer of 2026.