Oviedo has become the latest Spanish stop in Lionel Messi’s long journey through football’s honours. The Argentine, arriving from Miami before the World Cup, was welcomed by crowds outside the Hotel Reconquista as he prepared to receive the 2026 Princess of Asturias Award for Sports.
The distinction adds a different kind of recognition to a collection already filled with Ballons d’Or, scoring awards and major trophies. Rather than marking a single season or tournament, the Asturias prize celebrates Messi’s enduring influence on sport.
A return to Spain for a new honour
- Messi was named as the 2026 recipient of the Princess of Asturias Award for Sports on 3 June.
- Real Oviedo, the city’s LaLiga2 club, formally marked the occasion in a message of congratulations ahead of the World Cup.
- The club told Messi that he had won everything in football, but that some honours reach beyond silverware and recognise the permanent mark left on the world.
- Messi then travelled privately from Miami to Asturias with his wife, Antonela Roccuzzo.
- Supporters gathered in large numbers around the Hotel Reconquista, where the Argentine and his entourage were staying.
- The award ceremony is scheduled for October in Oviedo.
What the Asturias prize represents
The Princess of Asturias Awards are among Spain’s leading annual distinctions in culture, science, public life and sport. They are organised by the Princess of Asturias Foundation and presented by Princess Leonor of Bourbon, heir to the Spanish crown, with particular attention given to achievements connected to the Ibero-American world.
Oviedo’s Teatro Campoamor, in the Principality of Asturias, hosts the ceremony. The awards cover eight fields:
- Arts
- Literature
- Social Sciences
- Communication and Humanities
- Scientific and Technical Research
- International Cooperation
- Concord
- Sports
Along with the public tribute, each recipient receives a Joan Miró sculpture representing the award, a diploma, an insignia and a financial prize of €50,000. For Messi, whose career has carried him from Barcelona to Paris and now Miami, the ceremony offers another moment of Spanish recognition in the city where the country’s most prestigious civic honours are handed over.
