Traveling in Messi’s footsteps: The city where a boy from Rosario became a legend

Leo Messi’s ability to continue inspiring millions of fans around the world extends far beyond the football pitch. In his hometown of Rosario, in Argentina’s Santa Fe Province, the global superstar has become a true pilgrimage site for football fans and travelers seeking to follow the early footsteps of one of the greatest players in history.

Unlike traditional memorial sites that are created after athletes retire, Messi’s case is unique: While he is still competing at the highest levels of the sport, the city where he grew up has already transformed his life story into an official tourist experience.

The Municipality of Rosario operates a dedicated tourism route that takes visitors through the places that shaped Messi’s early life. One of the most emotional stops is his family home in the La Bajada neighborhood - a modest area where he grew up before becoming a global icon. From there, the route continues to School No. 66, where he studied and which is still active today, and to the Grandoli football club, where he first stepped onto an organized football field at the age of four.

At the local club, people still tell the story that has become part of Messi’s legend: His grandmother Celia was the one who convinced the coach to let him play, and the young boy rewarded her by scoring the first winning goal of his career.

It is precisely the simplicity of these locations that makes the route so special. There are no amusement parks or flashy museums here - only streets, football fields, and schools that tell the story of a neighborhood boy who dared to dream.

Visitors who want to explore Messi’s story more deeply will find additional sites throughout Rosario connected to his career. At the Santa Fe Province Sports Museum, a special section is dedicated to him, featuring exhibits documenting his achievements over the years. At the Olympic Promenade, a special plaque commemorates his gold medal victory with Argentina’s national team at the 2008 Beijing Olympics.

Another stop is the training complex of Newell’s Old Boys - the club where Messi began his professional journey before moving to Barcelona.

Even his personal life has become part of the route. In 2017, the City Center Rosario hosted his wedding to Antonela Roccuzzo, his childhood sweetheart, an event that turned the city into a focus of global attention.

Santa Fe Province takes pride in some of the world’s most impressive football murals dedicated to Messi. In the provincial capital, Santa Fe, a giant mural measuring 75 meters high and 40 meters wide depicts Messi lifting the World Cup trophy won by Argentina in Qatar in 2022. The artwork, titled “The Boy’s Dream,” is considered among the largest murals of its kind in the world.

Rosario chose a different approach. Near the school where Messi studied stands the mural “From Another World,” which portrays Messi without Barcelona or Argentina national team jerseys, reflecting the desire to present him as a universal symbol rather than merely a player representing a club or a country.

One particularly symbolic detail in the artwork is the pair of football boots hanging around his neck - one old and covered in mud, representing the boy who grew up on the streets of Rosario, and the other golden, symbolizing the career that took him to the summit of world football.

Messi himself also visited the mural and posed for photographs beside it, after previously sharing a picture of his three sons standing in front of the artwork.

Messi’s influence on the region goes beyond the football field. After revealing in an interview that he enjoys drinking red wine mixed with a lemon-flavored carbonated drink - a popular beverage in Argentina - a local ice cream chain called Carmiel, owned by the Bomagín family, decided to create a new flavor called “Vino y Gaseosa” (“Wine and Soda”).

The new flavor quickly became a social media sensation, and many tourists now arrive specifically to taste “Messi’s ice cream,” which has become one of the region’s most recognizable culinary attractions.

Travelers who want to experience this journey themselves do not need a private guide. The official Rosario Turismo app offers interactive maps and a self-guided tour through the Messi route in Rosario. It alerts visitors when they approach an interesting location, provides audio-visual content about each stop, and is available free of charge on Android and iPhone, allowing visitors to explore at their own pace.

Those looking to complete the experience can also plan a separate visit to Santa Fe City to see the impressive Messi mural and taste the popular ice cream - two additional attractions outside the official route included in the app.