Why Lionel Messi gifted gold iPhones to Argentina squad

Lionel Messi has spent a staggering £175,000 to have special golden iPhones made for his Argentina teammates and La Abliceleste's backroom staff.

The PSG forward's rather generous gesture has been the talk of social media over the last couple of days.

So why did Messi have a bunch of 24-carat iPhones made? How did he do it?

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Why Lionel Messi gifted gold iPhones to Argentina squad

The very simple answer is that Messi wanted to give his teammates and Argentina's staff a personal memento to toast their World Cup victory back in December.

Messi memorably led his country to glory in Qatar after beating reigning champions France on penalties at the Lusail Iconic Stadium.

When France were victorious in 2018, Antoine Griezmann had commemorative championship rings made for Les Bleus' squad in a nod to his American sports fandom.

How Lionel Messi had gold iPhones made

Following Argentina's triumph in Qatar, Messi used iDesign Gold to make 35 golden iPhones. Each phone is personalised to the player or member of staff, donning their name and shirt number (where appropriate) on the back.

The phones were delivered to Messi's residence in Paris this week and he will now go about distributing them personally.

Speaking to The Sun, Ben Lyons - the CEO of iDesign Gold - detailed the discussions he had with Messi over commissioning the phones.

"Lionel is not only the GOAT but he’s one of iDesign Gold's most loyal customers and got in touch with us a couple of months after the World Cup final," Lyons said.

"He said he wanted a special gift for all the players and staff to celebrate the amazing win but didn’t want the usual gift of watches.

"So, I suggested gold iPhones inscribed with their names and he loved the idea."