Before December 2022, Argentines knew by Hernán Casciar as a fairly successful writer.
After the World Cup final and the golden celebrations that followed, he became much more. Today he is a writer who got Lionel Messi’s to cry.
– It’s pretty crazy. I am recognized on the street because of Messi’s tears, Casciari tells Urheilu via video call.
In December, Argentina won the third World Cup in its history at Lusail Stadium in Qatar. A football-mad country messed up. Millions of people had been waiting for the World Cup victory for 36 years. Success on the field brought hope to a nation that was tired of precarious living conditions, corruption and financial problems.
For many, Messi was at least as big a reason for rejoicing. The superstar, who has achieved everything else in his career, managed to get the coveted World Cup trophy in what was probably his last attempt, at the age of 35.
Messi’s story also inspired Casciar, who watched the World Cup final at home in the countryside with his wife and five-year-old daughter.
When Messi arrived a couple of days after the final with the rest of the national team in Buenos Aires, memories flooded the writer’s mind.
– It was early at night, and I watched the team’s return on TV. When Messi descended the steps of the plane, I felt great emotion. My fingers started moving on the keyboard by themselves.
Casciari traveled in his mind to Barcelona and the beginning of the 21st century. Thousands of Argentines who suffered in the economic crisis of 2001 moved to Catalonia in search of work and a better life. Casciari was one of them.
Argentinian migrants kept in touch with each other on a popular internet chat service. There they talked about everything: the oddities of Spanish everyday life, food recipes and a teenage boy who had recently moved to Barcelona with his family.
Messi quickly became one of the most popular topics in the chat group. The diminutive striker shone in Barça’s junior teams in an unprecedented way.
Argentinians living in Spain were roughly divided into two camps – those who wanted to forget their roots and those who held on to them tooth and nail. Casciari belonged to the latter group and discovered to his delight that so did the soccer talent Messi.
In the interviews after the match, Messi answered all questions with “yes”, “no” or “thank you” and lowered his eyes. We would have liked to see the most versatile player. At the same time, we noticed something great: when Messi finally managed to say a slightly longer sentence, he left the letters s unpronounced, as is the custom of Rosarios. And it didn’t stop there. He used Argentinian expressions instead of Spanish ones. He said “ful” and not “falta” when talking about a foul, “orsai” and not “fuera de juego” when talking about offside. He was one of us. (Freely translated excerpt from Hernán Casciari’s text Lionel’s suitcase)
Over the years, Messi’s love for his home country was conveyed through many things: he sipped mate tea on the bench, stuck to his Argentinian accent in interviews, and traveled to his hometown of Rosario for Christmas every year.
Still, in his home country, he was subject to violent robbery from time to time. Although Kirppu had won everything possible with Barcelona, there was no result in the Argentine national team for a long time.
The mildest critics accused Messi of indifference to the national team and Argentina. At worst, the feedback was much harsher. When Argentina lost to Chile in the Copa America final in the summer of 2016, Messi announced that he would end his national team career. A little over a week later, after receiving countless encouraging messages from young supporters, he reversed his decision.
We chatters couldn’t imagine a worse nightmare than hearing voices of disdain from the place you love the most. We couldn’t imagine how incredibly painful it was when Messi heard the question from his son’s mouth: “Dad, why do they want to kill you in Argentina?” (Freely translated excerpt from Hernán Casciar’s text Lionel’s suitcase)
Messi’s surprising contact
Casciari wrote his recollections into a long story, which was printed in a small circle magazine he edited To Orsai.
– I had no expectations from it. In the middle of the World Cup celebration, every Argentinian wrote about their feelings and experiences. I thought that my own output would be just one part of a huge ocean of text.
Casciari read a summary of the popular presenter from his text by Andy Kusnetzoff on the radio show.
The hearing spread on social media and on his TikTok account Antonella Roccuzzo to the ears. Roccuzzo listened to Casciari’s story with her husband Messi while they sipped mate.
Perhaps the best soccer player in the world was impressed. So much so that he sent to Kusnetzoff a long voice message.
– “Anto” showed me Hernán’s story on TikTok. We started listening to it together and burst into tears. There was a lot of emotion in his story and it was absolutely true, Messi said.
Casciari is still moved when he remembers that moment.
– I felt immense joy. The best thing was when Messi confirmed my suspicions and said that he truly lived the moments I described in the text.
Casciari’s text spread to millions of people in Argentina and the world with the help of the radio program and the attention received from Messi. Many major media houses such as The Guardian, El País and Daily Mail published excerpts from the text. Casciari became a kind of national hero in his home country.
– After Messi’s message, I went to the pharmacy in my hometown the next day. A few people greeted me before, now everyone came to chat.
From the brink of death to huge popularity
The extremely popular text changed a lot in a way and nothing in a way.
In 2015, Casciari had a heart attack that ended his life. The writer had to undergo surgery, after which the doctor told the chain smoker the hard news. I had to stop smoking.
When Casciari returned to work after recovering, he noticed a dramatic change.
– I had the fear of time on my lips my entire career as a writer. I don’t remember writing anything without burning. When I had to quit smoking, writing became nothing.
Casciari began to do something else. He read ready-made texts aloud on television and radio and produced films. It was more than seven years before he could write a longer text again – on that December morning, when Messi landed from the plane as world champion.
– At that moment, something magical happened. My brain figured out that I could write without a cigarette. In that sense, Lionel’s suitcase changed my life.
At the same time, everyday life has remained the same. Today, Casciari lives a peaceful life in the small town of San Antonio de Areco, more than a hundred kilometers from the capital, Buenos Aires.
– I have many more readers now, but my daily life has not changed at all. I’m at home with my wife and daughter, and we watch football together. I don’t want to change that everyday life for anything.
Argentina’s World Cup and Messi’s story gave hope to many after decades of gloom.
Casciari describes Argentina as a highly divided country, where political turmoil, ongoing economic crises, crime and poverty have eroded people’s trust in each other.
– During the World Cup, people looked each other in the eye for the first time. In the last 50 years, that has happened extremely rarely.
According to the author, the influence of the national team and the World Cup title can still be seen in the nation, more than half a year after the World Cup tournament.
– It is best seen in the youngest generations. My daughter Pipa started his school days in March. On the first day, all the children were gathered in the school yard to sing the national anthem, the writer recalls.
– The song has not interested the children for years, but this time the children put their hands on their hearts and waved their legs, as they had seen the national team players do in the games. The children sang the anthem almost shouting, with immense pride.
“Messi can’t do the same as Ronaldo”
The World Cup success made Messi a saint in his home country. Many consider him a welcome role model for the new Argentine generations.
Saudi Arabia also courted Messi with astronomical sums so that he would have continued his career in the country’s football league. However, the attacker decided to move to Inter Miami of the North American MLS league in the summer.
In Europe, transfers of top players to Saudi clubs have been frowned upon, but for Argentinians struggling to make ends meet, human rights violations in the Middle East are distant problems. Would Messi’s move to Saudi Arabia be blessed at home?
– It is true that many Argentines cannot think about what is happening in other countries from their own problems. At the same time, our country has a large middle class that actively discusses the world, politics and human rights, says Casciari.
– We would not have liked it at all if Messi had moved to play in a country where Antonella could not live freely.
In particular, putting the comfort of the family first has garnered great appreciation from Argentinians. According to Casciari, Messi showed with his actions that family comes first.
– A great story must have a great ending. Messi can’t be weird. He cannot do the same as Cristiano Ronaldo.