The King of Qatar gifts Argentina captain Lionel Messi with a royal robe during the Fifa World Cup trophy presentation.
Images via Twitter
@messi
Messi’s royal robe: Honouring hero or stealing Argentina’s shine?
Argentina captain Lionel Messi was gifted a royal robe to wear by the King of Qatar – but was the move a sign of respect or a PR stunt?
The King of Qatar gifts Argentina captain Lionel Messi with a royal robe during the Fifa World Cup trophy presentation.
Images via Twitter
@messi
Lionel Messi is the undefeated champion of the 2022 Fifa World Cup, and to honour his momentous win for Argentina, the captain was bestowed with an extraordinary gift by the King of Qatar – a royal cloak.
The football hero was clothed in the black and gold garment moments before he lifted the World Cup trophy – a first-ever in his professional career.
But what is the garment, and what does it signify? And more importantly, why are football fans unhappy about him wearing it?
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KING HONOURS MESSI WITH ROYAL CLOAK
Moments before Messi was given the great honour of lifting the World Cup trophy on behalf of Argentina, the Emir or King of Qatar, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, draped a royal robe over his shoulders.
The cloak is called a Beshth or Bisht and is an Arabian garment gifted traditionally given to “warriors.” It is also a cloak worn by the royal family.
According to MailOnline, the garment is a robe worn at special occasions such as weddings and religious celebrations.
The publication reports that the clock “denotes power” and is “compared to that of a tuxedo in western culture.”
In scenes from the festivities, Messi graciously accepts the cloak before lifting the prestigious trophy. However, he later removed it to celebrate Argentina’s win with the rest of the team.
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FOOTBALL FANS HAVE MIXED FEELINGS
But not everyone was happy with the grandiose display from the King of Qatar, of which critics claimed was a “publicity stunt.”
Many tweeps called out Qatar for stealing Argentina’s shine, as the cloak partially obscured the emblem of Argentina on Messi’s soccer shirt.
@torumak7: “I understand the significance of the gesture, but the timing of it was awful & it came across as forced sports-washing. Millions had visualised the exact moment when Messi would lift a World Cup trophy above his head & nothing should have obscured the view of his national jersey.”
@craigburley: “The cloak on Messi. Dearie me. Let the man lift the WC in his Argentina shirt.”
@AlphaKaiser_II: “Now that the dust has settled, it must be said it was totally shameless that Qatar forced that black cloak on Messi. Embarrassing, making the moment all about them. Disgusting opportunism in my eyes.”
Twitter
Others defended the move, which was seen as a “sign of respect” to Messi.
@talliedar: “Messi is being honoured as royalty in his Argentinian shirt, as the King of Football. It’s poetic. I don’t expect haters to understand because small minds will never get to king level.”
@AshikZ66: “It is not a costume; its an outfit symbolizing honor; some people have cultures, you know. And just because it isnt democracy doesn’t mean it is a dictatorship.”
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