Lionel Messi receives strange £800k offer for controversial bisht from World Cup lift | Football | Sport
Lionel Messi has been offered £828,000 for the bisht he wore as he lifted the World Cup by an Omani member of parliament who hopes to keep it in the Middle East. The footballing icon was given the garment by Gianni Infantino to wear for the historic moment as a sign of honour but the move was criticised by the likes of Gary Lineker and Pablo Zabaleta who were unhappy that the famous blue and white strips of Argentina were covered up.
The image of Messi holding the World Cup trophy aloft for the first time is one of the most iconic in the sport’s history with the bisht front and centre. It is traditional wear in the Middle East, trimmed with gold and worn for special occasions like weddings. It was handed to the PSG star as a sign of respect for everything he had achieved at the tournament in Qatar and in football as a whole.
Now, Omani lawyer and MP, Ahmed Al Barwani, has offered Messi a substantial sum for the robe as he seeks to keep a significant part of recent Arabic history in the Middle East. Writing on Twitter he said: “From the Sultanate of Oman I congratulate you for winning the World Cup Qatar 2022 … the Arabic bisht, a symbol of chivalry and wisdom. I’m offering you $1 million in return for that bisht.”
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However, not all the feedback was positive with Lineker and Zabaleta criticising Messi’s shirt being covered after the game. “Amazing scenes, great pictures from above and great pictures from inside the ground as Argentina win the World Cup for the third time,” the BBC presenter said.
“It seems a shame, in a way, that they’ve covered up Messi in his Argentina shirt.” Former Argentina international was more scathing in his attack. “Just why?” he queried. “Why? No reason to do that.”
The move to bestow the bisht on Messi is likely to continue to divide opinion however it is clear that it meant it a lot to those residing in the Middle East.
