Messi must come back, says Barcelona presidential candidate

Lionel Messi could be in line to make a return to Barcelona, should presidential hopeful Marc Ciria be elected next year.

Joan Laporta will be challenged in 2026, with Ciria confirming he will run for president.

And Ciria has insisted that, should he succeed, he will do all he can to bring Messi, Barcelona's record goalscorer, back to the Blaugrana.

Messi left Barca in 2021, joining Paris Saint-Germain before heading off to sign for Inter Miami, with whom he won MLS Cup earlier this month.

"We want our legends to be able to come back to the club and not have to do it in the middle of the night and hidden," Ciria said at an event to launch his candidacy on Tuesday, as reported by ESPN.

"We will do everything possible to achieve it. [Messi] is an indispensable figure for this club. He must come back with a solid support system and a good structure in place.

"The Messi-Barca relationship has to be like the Michael Jordan-Nike one. It must go above and beyond, from the commercial and institutional areas of the club to the sponsors and development of players at La Masia.

"With the best player in the club's history, we can do so many things and earn so much money. Bringing him home is essential if we want to emerge from the financial situation we are in."

Victor Font is another presidential candidate and has also expressed a desire to bring Messi back to Barca.

"It's not about convincing him with a statue or a tribute game," Ciria said.

"It's about an agreement that makes the best sportsman on the planet Barca's biggest ambassador."

Messi signed a new contract with Miami earlier this year, but last month he returned to Camp Nou during the international break.

"I hope that one day I can return, and not just to say goodbye as a player, as I never got to do..." Messi posted on Instagram.