Is Lionel Messi a Potterhead? The Harry Potter Pen He Used To Write His Emotional 'Goodbye' Message

As supporters processed Lionel Messi's announcement that he was retiring from the Argentina National Football Team, some eagle-eyed fans noticed a curious detail in his farewell message: a Harry Potter ballpoint pen. The detail prompted speculation over whether the seven‑time Ballon d'Or holder is a fan of the wizarding franchise.

'After the time that has passed since the final, and after giving it a lot of thought, I want to let everyone know that I am retiring from the National Team...' Messi wrote on Instagram in Spanish. 'It was a decision that hurt—and still hurts deep down—but I understand that the time has come.'

What Pen Did Messi Use?

Messi posted his three-page handwritten farewell note on Instagram. The pages were laid out beside each other and the golden ballpoint was placed over the last one. Potterheads—the nickname for Harry Potter fans—immediately noticed the distinctive pen.

It was a Wizarding World of Harry Potter Ballpoint Pen exclusively sold in Universal Studios. It is emblazoned with the words 'Department of Mysteries,' known to fans as where confidential and secret magical research takes place.

The department also serves as storage for the Ministry's supply of Time-Turners. The pen is also decorated with a Time-Turner on its clip.

'I swear to you that I always gave it my all—not just in these last few years when we won everything, but before that too; I always fought and left everything on the field for this jersey, to bring you joy and make you feel proud to be Argentine through football,' Messi also said in his note and Instagram post.

Messi said he wrote the message on 21 July 2026, two days after Argentina's 1-0 extra-time defeat to Spain in the World Cup final. But it was the death of his father, Jorge Messi, on 8 August 2026, that convinced him that retirement is the right choice.

Is Messi a Harry Potter Fan?

There is evidence that the Messi-Roccuzzo family is, although it is harder to establish whether Messi himself selected the Harry Potter pen. His wife, Antonella Roccuzzo, is the true Potterhead. In August 2016, shortly after the release of 'Harry Potter and the Cursed Child,' she shared a photo of the book on Instagram.

Roccuzzo is also fond of dressing their children in Harry Potter-themed clothes, from wizard costumes to T-shirts.

She has also shared posts about watching the film series. Perhaps the most lasting proof that she is a Potterhead are her Harry-Potter-themed tattoos: a Golden Snitch on her left arm and a small 'The Deathly Hallows' geometric symbol elsewhere.

Harry Potter also surfaces in the couple's relationship of 18 years—Roccuzzo and Messi have been married for nine of those years. Former Italian footballer Christian 'Bobo' Vieri once compared Messi to the boy wizard.

'Messi is a magician; he's the Harry Potter of soccer and when he stops playing, I'm throwing my TVs away,' Vieri said in 2020. 'I'm not going to work no more on TV, I'm going to watch Netflix, that's it, because when he stops there's nothing else to watch.'