A celebratory moment for Lionel Messi and the Argentina men’s national team nearly turned disastrous upon the group’s return home on Tuesday.
While riding atop a bus through the streets of Buenos Aires to begin the nation-wide celebration of their dramatic victory over France in the World Cup final, Messi and a handful of teammates narrowly dodged a low-hanging street wire. Messi, along with Leandro Paredes, Rodrigo De Paul, Ángel Di María and Nicolás Otamendi, didn’t see the cable approaching until the last second, but managed to move out of the way just in time.
The wire did narrowly clip Paredes, who lost his hat in the process, but thankfully the group of players were able to avoid a more serious incident and continue the celebration.
Pandemonium has broken out across Argentina and in Buenos Aires over the past 48 hours to commemorate the country’s first World Cup championship since 1986. Messi played the hero for La Albiceleste, scoring twice in the final game and earning the 2022 Golden Ball, awarded to the tournament’s best player.
Messi, 35, seemed to enjoy himself at the early morning celebrations after winning the first World Cup of his remarkable career. He capped the day off by taking the World Cup trophy to bed, before gearing up for the country’s official championship parade later on Tuesday.
