which will be held next March 15, does not slow down. This Wednesday morning, the pre-candidate and leader of the ‘Moviment 42’, Marc Ciria, displayed a large canvas with the image of Leo Messi in the heart of Barcelona, on a building on the corner of Travessera de Gràcia and Aribau. A banner with the legendary photograph of the Argentine holding and showing his shirt to the stands of the Santiago Bernabéu with his number 10. Next to it, a message in Catalan: “Want to see you again.” , deployed at the end of 2020 near the Real Madrid stadium.
This initiative has been promoted outside of Messi himself or his entourage, who have preferred to stay completely out of the elections. “There have been no contacts or meetings with any pre-candidate,” said people close to the Argentine.
But Ciria uses his image to continue with his campaign. And it is not trivial. Just Leo Messi, Laporta’s weak point. During the previous electoral campaign in 2021, that month of March, Laporta promised to resolve the situation on 10 with “a barbecue.” He won the elections. But that summer, Messi left in tears after 20 years wearing the Barça shirt: Laporta told Jorge Messi that his renewal would not be possible. “I did everything possible to stay; the club, I don’t know,” said number 10.
Last November, at night, while Barcelona fans were watching the match against Celta in Vigo and the cameras were far from the stadium. The next day, in the morning, with everyone already awake, he sent a thoughtful message through his social networks with photographs of his meeting with his former football home: “Last night I returned to a place that I miss with my soul. A place where I was immensely happy, where you made me feel a thousand times the happiest person in the world. I hope one day I can return, and not just to say goodbye as a player, as I never was able to do…”.
Now his image returns to the center of Barcelona, this time with the help of a rival of Laporta, Marc Ciria. The economist, who presents his program at his electoral headquarters this Wednesday afternoon, requested 10,000 ballots in order to pass the first cut of the pre-candidacy – 2,337 supports are necessary before March 2 -, and with Laporta, Víctor Font and Xavier Vilajoana as the main opponents. On March 5, it will be known who passes that first cut and the candidacies will finally be announced to hold the elections on the 15th.
