French rugby star Antoine Dupont met with Argentine football legend Lionel Messi at Inter Miami in a rare meeting of two giants from different sporting disciplines - and it's captured the attention of fans worldwide.
Antoine Dupont, a recent Olympic gold medallist and three-time Six Nations Player of the Championship, is widely regarded as the best player in rugby. The Toulouse and France scrum-half visited Messi at Inter Miami's facilities while preparing to make his eagerly-awaited return to rugby union following his successful sabbatical in sevens.
A symbolic meeting, then: two generational talents who have both reached stratospheric levels of popularity. Dupont’s visit comes after another exceptional year for him. Not only was there Olympic gold at the Stade de France, but he led Toulouse to a domestic and European double. In Florida, Messi presented Dupont with an Inter Miami jersey with his name emblazoned across the back (number nine, of course). The vivid pink was perhaps a bit too close to a Stade Français kit for some Toulouse fans' comfort, though.
Eight-time Ballon d'Or winner Messi, still in the spotlight after his move to MLS from Paris Saint-Germain in 2023, has continued to dominate football. Despite transitioning to a new league, Messi has maintained his winning ways.
Dupont has documented some of his trip to Florida on his social media account, including a frighteningly close encounter with an alligator, as well as a meeting with former France international Blaise Matuidi, a Toulouse native who finished his playing career in Miami.
It's rare to see stars from different sports come together, but when they do, these kinds of cross-discipline meet-ups tend to make waves. Famous examples include basketball icon Michael Jordan and tennis superstar Roger Federer, who met and expressed mutual admiration in 2014, while NBA legend LeBron James met football great Cristiano Ronaldo during a Real Madrid match.
Intriguingly, France welcome Argentina to the Stade de France for November's Autumn Nations Series, in a fixture that invariably produces high levels of entertainment. Fans will hope Dupont is back in Les Bleus colours for that encounter.
