Overview
- The municipality of Cutral Có publicly inaugurated the white Messi statue on Monday, June 22, 2026, and local reports say it measures 26 metres high and weighs about 70 tonnes.
- The sculpture, created by local artist Aldo Beroisa, shows Messi kneeling with a raised fist in the national jersey and includes a replica of the 2022 World Cup trophy; it is sited on one of the town’s main roads.
- Cutral Có invited residents and visitors to a public viewing at the statue for Argentina’s second group match in Dallas, positioning the work as a focal point for communal match-watching.
- Officials hope the landmark will draw tourists to Cutral Có and neighbouring Plaza Huincul as the towns seek to broaden an economy long centred on oil and petrochemicals.
- The unveiling follows a recent safety episode in Kolkata where a 21-metre Messi monument built during Messi’s December 2025 India trip began to sway in wind and was dismantled, a development that raises engineering and regulatory questions for large temporary or new public sculptures.