Cristiano Ronaldo’s controversial ‘like’: Post claims FIFA helped Messi’s Argentina reach World Cup final

Portugal star’s latest Messi controversy reeks of bitterness

Cristiano Ronaldo has sparked another embarrassing controversy after his verified Instagram account liked a post claiming FIFA helped Lionel Messi and Argentina reach the 2026 Men’s World Cup final.

The video, published by the Spanish television program Espejo Publico before Argentina faced Spain, featured journalist Pilar Rodriguez Losantos questioning whether the defending champions deserved their place in the tournament’s biggest match.

“Argentina are a team who should have been eliminated approximately five matches ago, with the help of FIFA, which is one of the most corrupt institutions on planet Earth,” she said.

Ronaldo hasn’t explained why his account liked the post. However, screenshots showing @cristiano among its likes quickly spread online, making this another unflattering episode in his exhausting comparison with Messi.

Ronaldo is poorly placed to complain about FIFA favoritism

The irony is difficult to ignore because Ronaldo benefited from an extraordinary FIFA disciplinary decision before the tournament even began.

He was sent off for violent conduct against Ireland during qualifying, an offense that ordinarily carried a three-match suspension. FIFA instead imposed one immediate match and suspended the other two for a year, allowing Ronaldo to appear in Portugal’s opening World Cup games.

That decision attracted understandable criticism. Ronaldo was effectively granted leniency for an incident serious enough to be officially classified as violent conduct, yet his account has now endorsed allegations that Argentina received special assistance.

No credible evidence has been presented proving that FIFA engineered Argentina’s route to the final. Liking such a claim, then, looks less like principled concern and more like another bitter reaction to Messi succeeding on the stage that consistently exposed Ronaldo’s limitations.

Messi’s performances require no conspiracy

Argentina survived several difficult knockout matches, but their progress was driven by resilience and the brilliance of their captain.

Messi scored eight goals during the tournament, including a group stage hat-trick, and produced decisive assists as Argentina overturned a deficit against England in the semifinal. At 39, he again carried enormous creative responsibility and led his country into a second consecutive World Cup final.

Those performances speak far louder than an Instagram like.

Ronaldo remains one of football’s greatest scorers, but the repeated need to diminish Messi only weakens his own legacy. Messi has won the World Cup, repeatedly dominated the tournament, and elevated Argentina when the pressure was greatest.

The debate, if it ever really existed, has been over for years. Messi is football’s greatest ever player, and Ronaldo’s apparent inability to accept that reality is becoming increasingly undignified.