Messi closes in on full takeover of Spanish second-division club CD Eldense

Lionel Messi is close to completing a full takeover of Spanish second-division club CD Eldense, according to a report from Spanish publication AS, with an official announcement potentially imminent.

The 39-year-old Inter Miami forward is said to have reached an agreement to acquire a 100 per cent stake in the La Liga 2 side, who currently sit in the relegation zone. His lawyers are reported to be in talks with TH, a Colombian investment group, to finalise the deal.

Should the takeover be confirmed, it would mark Messi’s second venture into club ownership. He already holds a stake in Cornella, a club competing in the fifth tier of Spanish football.

Messi is currently in his fourth MLS season with Inter Miami, having signed a contract extension earlier this year that runs through the end of the 2028 campaign — by which point he will be 41. The ownership move suggests he is already planning for life beyond playing.

The news comes roughly a month after Messi announced his retirement from international football, a decision he described as deeply painful. His final appearance for Argentina was a 1-0 defeat to Spain in the World Cup final in New Jersey in July.

“After all this time that has passed since the final, and after much thought, I want to announce to everyone that I am retiring from the National Team,” Messi wrote on Instagram. “It was a decision that hurt, and still hurts, to my core, but I understand that it’s the right time.”

He added: “I swear that I always gave my all, not just in the last few years when we won everything, but before that too. There’s not much time left, and chapters are closing, and this is one that hurts me deeply.”

The retirement announcement came just weeks after the death of his father, Jorge Messi, adding a personal dimension to what was already a landmark moment in the career of one of football’s most decorated players.

No official confirmation of the Eldense deal has been issued by Messi’s representatives at the time of publication.