In a thrilling finale decided by penalty kicks, Argentina beat France in the World Cup 4 – 2 on Sunday, Dec. 18, finally giving the country’s most famous athlete, Lionel Messi, soccer’s most famous trophy. The 35-year-old superstar, who scored twice against France at the Qatar stadium, celebrated the dramatic victory with his wife, Antonela Roccuzzo, and their adorable three children — Thiago, 10, Mateo, 7, & Ciro, 4, — immediately following Argentina’s Gonzalo Montiel’s winning shot.
Meeting up on the sidelines, Lionel was surrounded by Antonela and their kids as they all wore matching soccer jerseys to show their support. The iconic athlete couldn’t contain his smile while he wrapped his arms around his brood, and they took turns passing the trophy. Making sure to capture the historic moment, Antonela took selfies of her adorable family celebrating their early holiday gift.
And what a gift it was! After spending years — and five appearances at the World Cup — only to come up short of the big win, Lionel finally won top prize in the 2022 series, which also made him the first player in World Cup history to hit a goal in every game of the knockout rounds, per CBS News.
The hard-fought win was undoubtedly appreciated by Lionel’s gorgeous model wife. Since 2007, Antonela has been by the soccer player’s side. They welcomed Thiago five years later, and then Mateo in 2015 and Ciro in 2018. A year before Ciro’s arrival, the couple decided to make it official and get married. The ceremony was not only described by an Argentine newspaper as “the wedding of the year,” it was also referred to as “the wedding of the century,” per the BBC.
Now, perhaps, Lionel, Antonela and their three boys can have the World Cup win celebration of the century!