Pope Francis defends his own goal, declares Lionel Messi is not God

Pope Francis and Lionel Messi at the Vatican. Photo / Getty Images

The Pope has declared that Barcelona superstar Lionel Messi "is not God".

Pope Francis is a great admirer of his fellow Argentinian Messi, but — understandably — draws a line when it comes to his praise.

He has told Spanish TV laSexta that in theory, it would be sacrilegious to call Messi 'God' while understanding why some fans call him that.

"You can't say it and I don't believe it. I think people say 'he is God' just as they say 'I adore you," Pope Francis said.

"¿Es un sacrilegio decir que Messi es Dios?". Francisco responde en #SalvadosPapa. "Da gusto, pero no es Dios" https://t.co/MxQ4qs9ryw

— laSexta (@laSextaTV) March 31, 2019

"You have to adore only God. It's expressions that people use. This is a god with the ball on the pitch.

"It's a popular way that people have of expressing themselves. Of course it is a joy (to watch Messi). But he is not God."

The head of the Catholic Church is a big football fan, supports a team in Buenos Aires and has a stash of jerseys thrown to him at events. The Pope and Messi met in 2013.