Lionel Messi was awarded the Princess of Asturias Award for Sports at the Campoamor Theater in Oviedo, the traditional venue for a ceremony that each year brings together leading figures from the Arts, Sciences, Culture and Sports. The Argentine received the award from Princess Leonor in the presence of King Felipe VI and Queen Letizia, and the theater gave him a huge ovation.
His arrival added to the occasion: Messi reached the theater in an official car at around 6:10 p.m., roughly 20 minutes before the event, and made his way toward the venue in front of hundreds of people who had crowded together to see him and the other award winners. The ovation that greeted him was described as reaching all the way to Argentina, his homeland.
His sporting record — four Champions League titles, a World Cup, two Copa América titles and almost every record in the sport — was not the only basis for the award. The jury, which included MARCA director Juan Ignacio Gallardo, also recognized Messi’s charitable work, including his efforts through the Leo Messi Foundation and as a UNICEF ambassador, focused on promoting access to education and healthcare for children in vulnerable situations. It noted, too, a recent donation to help restore a mountain range in Madrid burned by last summer’s wildfires, as well as work he does that is not publicly known — an essential part of the case for the award.
After the ceremony, Messi will head directly to Asturias airport to fly to New York, where he plays with Inter Miami in MLS tomorrow.