Lionel Messi has been in the spotlight since Argentina won the FIFA World Cup in Qatar. His contract with Paris Saint-Germain was extended, and the famed Maracana Stadium in Brazil urged him to leave his mark in the Hall of Fame. The Central Bank of the Republic of Argentina debated putting Messi on the thousand-peso currency note on Wednesday.
According to the financial publication El Financiero, Argentina’s regulator bank met to commemorate La Albiceleste’s historic World Cup victory.
Argentina defeated France 4-2 in a penalty shootout in the Qatar World Cup final after the game was deadlocked 3-3 until extra time.
Even though the newspaper said that the bank “jokingly presented” the proposal, the authorities did hold a meeting on it before the World Cup final.
“Before you think otherwise, this option was ‘jokingly’ proposed by members of the Argentine Central Bank, though the most enthusiastic directors, such as Lisandro Cleri, a fervent supporter of Boca Juniors, and Eduardo Hecker, a supporter of Independiente, agreed that a banknote with this design would awaken the collecting spirit of Argentines,” El Financiero reported.
The bank has previously issued commemorative coins to commemorate Argentina’s first World Cup victory in 1978 and the 50th death anniversary of Eva Peron, the wife of former President Juan Domingo Peron.
According to the article, the currency note will also bear the inscription ‘La Scaloneta’ on the back to honour coach Lionel Scaloni.
“And on the back of the ticket’s back? “They think ‘La Scaloneta’ (the nickname of the team led by Leonel Scaloni) has already done enough to be immortalised there, this after their victory in the 2021 Copa América, the Finalissima (the match against Italy, the most recent Euro champion), and Qatar 2022,” the newspaper reported.
