Cristiano Ronaldo or Lionel Messi? FIFA president gives honest answer to IShowSpeed

FIFA president Gianni Infantino gave a diplomatic response when asked to choose between Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo by IShowSpeed. The FIFA president recently appeared on the YouTuber's live steam to promote the upcoming FIFA Club World Cup.

Speed asked him to choose between the two modern superstars, to which Infantino gave an interesting response.

"Two great players. Two incredible players. If you are Portuguese, then you are for Ronaldo. If you are Argentinean, you are for Messi. If you are a football fan or a soccer fan, however you call it, you want to see both because it's just a lovely game. I would love to see them play together. Imagine the two of them in the same team – wouldn't that be something special?" said Infantino.

Speed appeared lost in thought for a few seconds, before wondering if Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi would eventually play together some day.

"Why do I feel like it's gonna happen one day?" said Speed.

Infantino reponded:

"In the FIFA team maybe, with you (Speed). We set up a team and we all play together.... for some good cause."

Cristiano Ronaldo currently plies his trade with Al-Nassr, although his contract expires this summer. Meanwhile, Lionel Messi is also in the final year of his contract with Inter Miami.

Will Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi lock heads at FIFA Club World Cup?

Gianni Infantino also suggested on livestream that Cristiano Ronaldo could play a part in the upcoming FIFA Club World Cup. CR7's Al-Nassr haven't qualified for this summer tournament which will feature 32 teams from across the world.

Lionel Messi, however, will feature at the tournament, as Inter Miami have qualified after winning the Supporters' Shield last season. However, it now appears that there could be a chance of a Messi vs Ronaldo encounter at the FIFA Club World Cup this summer.

Speaking to Speed, the FIFA president said that there have been discussions with clubs regarding a move for CR7 ahead of the tournament.

"Ronaldo might play for one of the teams as well at the Club World Cup – there are discussions. There are discussions with some clubs. So if any club is watching and interested in hiring Ronaldo for the Club World Cup… who knows, who knows," said Infantino.

According to The Athletic, Ronaldo's representatives are least pleased with Infantino's abrupt statement, since there's no deal in place with any club.

About the author

Deepungsu is a veteran football journalist who has been covering daily transfer roundups and news for over six years at Sportskeeda. He has written 9000 articles for the website, and has garnered over 19.5 million reads.

Deepungsu holds a PG degree in Microbiology and an MBA degree in Total Quality Management. He has an extensive two-decade long writing experience, which includes a decade of sports blogging. His writing prowess has even led his work getting cited on the legendary Franz Beckenbauer's Wikipedia page.

Inspired by Diego Maradona, Deepungsu played as an attacking midfielder for his local club at subdivision level in his initial years and scored an important goal or two. However, his all-time favorite footballer is Lionel Messi, and evidently, he feels Argentina's glory in 2022 is his favorite FIFA World Cup moment for fulfilling his long-standing dream. He is also an ardent East Bengal fan.

Deepungsu has been a Manchester United supporter since the year 2000. Unsurprisingly, his favorite manager is Sir Alex Ferguson and the Scotsman helped him get through some of the toughest days of his life. Like the fiery Scot, Deepungsu also leaves no stone unturned when it comes to accuracy in articles and only relies on credible sources.

Despite believing in Kylian Mbappe and Erling Haaland to create an iconic rivalry, Deepungsu reckons no one can match the longevity of Messi and Ronaldo. He spends his leisure time writing about life on his blog, reading books, and playing the guitar.

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Edited by Sudeshna Banerjee