IMAGE: External Affairs Minister Dr Subrahmanyam Jaishankar being presented a Messi jersey by Argentina's Science Minister Daniel Filmus at their meeting in New Delhi, February 6, 2023. Photograph: PTI Photo
Argentina is making capital use of its World Cup win.
Its diplomats and officials are quick to present world leaders with jerseys autographed by soccer star and Argentina's World Cup-winning captain Lionel Messi, much to the recepient's delight.
IMAGE: Pablo Gonzalez, president of YPF, Argentina's State-owned energy company, gifts Lionel Messi jerseys to Prime Minister N D Modi on the sidelines of the India Energy Week in Bengaluru, February 6, 2023. Photographs: ANI/Twitter
There is no record of Prime Minister Modi or the EAM having played soccer in their youth, but their glee at receiving the Messi memento is evident.
