Messi receives Spain's Princess of Asturias sports award, recalls Barcelona years

Lionel Messi has picked up the 2026 Princess of Asturias Award for Sports at a ceremony in Oviedo, northern Spain, and used the moment to look back on his years at Barcelona.

Speaking to the Spanish news agency EFE, the Argentine said his time at the Camp Nou was hard to capture in a few words. He recalled sharing a dressing room with Xavi Hernandez, Andres Iniesta and Carles Puyol, and said the group counted themselves fortunate to have won so much.

What mattered just as much, he said, was how they did it: the pleasure they took in playing and winning, and the everyday life of training and being together. He described those days as a wonderful time.

Messi also spoke warmly of the city and the club, saying he carries a deep affection for both.

Why the award matters

The Princess of Asturias Awards are among Spain's most prestigious honours. Messi was named the sports winner earlier this year, becoming the first individual footballer to take the category.

The award committee said it recognised his talent and trophy haul, but also his charity work to widen access to education and healthcare for children from poorer backgrounds. It also praised his conduct, humility and team spirit.

Messi came through Barcelona's youth ranks and made his senior debut in 2004. He won multiple La Liga titles and UEFA Champions League crowns there before leaving in 2021, when the club could not renew his contract because of its financial troubles.

For Nigerian fans, the Oviedo appearance is a reminder of the Barcelona era many grew up watching on television screens across the country, and of the charitable side of a player whose name still sells shirts from Lagos to Kano.

Messi did not announce any new plans at the ceremony, and there was no indication of a return to Spanish football.