According to RMC, Argentinian fans grew suspicious of Messi's comments ahead of the 2026 FIFA World Cup final, prompting Mac Allister's father to clarify.

The footage sparked extensive discussion. After Spain defeated Argentina 1-0 in extra time in the 2026 FIFA World Cup final, a video of Messi addressing his teammates before kickoff went viral on social media. In the video, Messi first said, "Come on, guys, calm down, everyone calm down. The most important thing is to stay calm." He then added a few words that made some Argentinian fans suspicious: "Forget everything. Just play. We're only focused on the game, guys."

These fragmented words were enough to arouse suspicion, and various conspiracy theories quickly emerged on social media. Based solely on these decontextualized words, combined with the possibly dejected performances of some players, some people began to speculate about various claims. Carlos Mac Allister, father of Argentina midfielder Alexis Mac Allister, also noticed the speculation.

Carlos Mac Allister revealed during an appearance on Radio La Red, as reported by La Nacion, that he sent a text message to Alexis: "Hey, what happened in the locker room? Did something go wrong?" "Even I was led astray by the suspicion," he said. "If even I start to doubt—and my son would surely tell me first if there was a real problem—then imagine what others must be thinking!"

He then revealed the true meaning of the speech. "He said no; they were talking about how the game should be played from a football perspective: how to organize the offense, how to pass, how to rotate and play triangles, instead of always making long passes or losing possession. That's what it was about." He added: "But later, doubts grew. In recent days, especially because of that post, many people messaged me, and some started to imply this narrative."

"Ultimately, everyone will always wonder, 'What did he really mean by that?' But I think everyone knows the reality. We played against Spain, and they were indeed stronger."

"This will sting for a while, but we have to accept that sometimes you come up against opponents who are stronger than you. That doesn't mean we didn't give our all; the entire team fought hard. But we faced a Spanish team that was in better form and had more depth than us."

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