MIAMI — It is hard to fathom just how much Sunday’s World Cup final means to Argentine soccer fans, but you get a pretty good idea after five minutes on the phone with Patricio Colazo, a 41-year-old handyman who runs a small construction company in Pembroke Pines.
He was born and raised in Rosario, Argentina, hometown of soccer icon Lionel Messi. Earlier this week, when Argentina advanced to the Cup final against France, Colazo booked a pair of $2,700 plane tickets from Miami to Qatar for himself and his girlfriend and another for his brother from Buenos Aires.
He doesn’t have tickets for the highly anticipated match; but planned to board that Friday Turkish Airways flight anyway and make the 7,656-mile, 17-hour journey in hopes of somehow getting into the stadium.
If he can’t land game tickets, he will be happy just to be near the game and in the same city as the estimated 40,000 Argentines who made the trek despite their nation’s economic troubles. He is taking an Argentina jersey, banners, Messi balloons and an Inter Miami cap, as he is also a diehard fan of the local MLS team.
Colazo must be back at work by 7 a.m. Tuesday and calculates that the three-day trip will cost him around $20,000, the most expensive trip of his life. He says it is well worth it.
“My father died in May, and I told him that if we (Argentina) make it to the World Cup final, I would be there,” Colazo said. “I didn’t want to make travel plans too early because I didn’t want to jinx the team, but once we went up 2-0 over Croatia in the semifinal, I figured it was safe to book the tickets. This could be the last World Cup for Messi, and I’m not going to miss it.”
Messi, you see, is not just the seven-time world soccer player of the year to the people of Argentina. He is a 5-foot-7 messiah who has been put on this Earth to bring a World Cup trophy to their country for the first time since 1986, when another undersized soccer deity, Diego Maradona, did it.
Messi is 35 years old and one win away from securing the only major title missing from his illustrious resume. All of Argentina, and Messi’s 391 million Instagram followers around the world, are hanging on his every silky move.
“Futbol for Argentina is much more than futbol, and Messi is much more than a futbol player,” said Ernesto Conrad, a native of Argentina who lives in Coconut Grove and flew to Brazil last-minute in July 2014 to watch Argentina play Germany in the World Cup final. He arrived without a game ticket or a place to stay. He slept on a rented mattress on the airport floor and bought a ticket outside the stadium for $5,000. Argentina lost 1-0.
“After decades of regression, of inflation, of losing its economy and security, the Argentine people pour their souls into the national team in hopes of finding unity and joy,” Conrad said. “Messi embodies all the values we want from our politicians. Great effort, humility, perseverance, and connection with the people. We feel close to him in a way we can’t find in politics. And he has a magical connection with children. They all idolize him and wear his jersey.”
Messi is so beloved that hundreds of fans in replica No. 10 blue and white striped jerseys gathered outside his grandmother’s apartment building in Rosario after the win over Croatia and chanted “Es la abuela de Messi! Es la abuela de Messi!” (It’s Messi’s grandmother) over and over, and over again.
He is so beloved that a helicopter dangling an enormous Messi No. 10 jersey was spotted flying around the skies of Rosario earlier this week.
Messi and his teammates are such a big deal in Argentina that a fan in a Messi shirt was arrested in San Miguel on Tuesday after hijacking a city bus full of passengers because he was in a rush to get home for the World Cup semifinal and was irritated that the driver made a stop at a convenience store.
We love, and often worship, our teams and sports heroes in this country, but not that much. Our fans don’t sing outside athletes’ grandmas’ homes or hijack buses to make kickoff. Our schools, businesses and government offices don’t shut down on game days.
“The national team paralyzes all of Argentina when it plays,” said Inter Miami goalkeeper coach Sebastian Saja, an Argentine who spent most of his career in Argentina and played briefly for the national team. “It also mobilizes and paralyzes all the Argentines who live outside Argentina. This particular team transcends nationality, as tens of thousands of fans from India and Bangladesh have shown up in Qatar to root for Messi and Argentina.”
You don’t have to be in Doha, Rosario, or Buenos Aires Sunday morning to get a feel for the passion around La Albiceleste (the white and blue). Just go watch the final at one of the many Argentine restaurants in South Florida. Go to Manolo on North Beach, La Parilla Liberty in South Beach, Fiorito in Northeast Miami, Graziano’s in Coral Gables or one of Novecento’s locations in Brickell, Aventura, Key Biscayne, and Doral.
The Argentinian population in South Florida has grown to an estimated 100,000 and chances are, most of them own a national team jersey. When the national anthem is played before the World Cup games, Argentine fans belt out the lyrics with pride before digging into sandwiches de miga and empanadas.
If you want to see a heated discussion break out, ask local Argentines if they think Maradona or Messi is the best Albiceleste player of all time. The Maradona camp says because Messi moved to Spain at age 14, he does not represent the Argentine population the way Maradona did. They say Maradona won a World Cup with less talent around him while Messi has world-class teammates and still hasn’t won one.
“Before Argentina won the Copa America last year, there were Argentines who felt that Messi didn’t reach the stature of Maradona, that he didn’t get a World Cup, that he doesn’t sing the national anthem, that he went to Europe too young,” said Argentine T.V. personality Fernando Fiore, who is based in Miami and is in Qatar for the World Cup.
“Now, I think all the Argentines are supporting Messi and want their team to get the third star on their jersey. It’s a healthy problem when you have those two icons in one country.”
France is the defending World Cup champion, a fantastic team with plenty of all-star talent, led by Kylian Mbappe, one of the most dazzling players in recent history. The Mbappe vs Messi matchup surely has T.V. executives salivating. But unless you’re French, it’s going to be hard not to root for Messi and Argentina.
Pele raised a World Cup trophy. So did Maradona. Now, it’s Messi’s turn. And if he somehow winds up playing for Inter Miami next season, that will be the hottest ticket in town.
