It is a dedication that is a "blessing" that Pope Francis wrote, last Wednesday, December 12, for Lionel Messi on an Athletica Vaticana t-shirt.
And to deliver the shirt to Messi yesterday, Sunday 23 January, was Monsignor Emmanuel Gobilliard, auxiliary bishop of Lyon, in charge of the French Bishops' Conference for the Paris 2024 Olympics.
And so now the 'exchange of shirts' between the Pope and the Argentine champion is complete: on 18 October, in fact, the French Prime Minister, Jean Castex, had given Francesco Messi's shirt - number 30, that of Paris Saint-Germain - with an autographed dedication.
"Messi and I prayed together and he told me how important faith is for him"
With Monsignor Gobilliard - who with the official sports center of the Holy See ran the relay at the Meeting "We Run Togheter" co-organized with last September 21 together with the Fiamme Gialle - Athletica Vaticana is carrying out the commitment of a vision of spiritual sport, inclusive and supportive, especially in the perspective of the Paris Olympics.
"To be truly" all brothers ", as Monsignor Gobilliard said to a happy Messi for the homage received from the Pope.