From Romance to Ruin: Lionel Messi’s Yacht Nightmare Off the Coast

The sweet dating yacht vacation with wife turned into nightmare with the vessel sinking off the coast. The 38-year-old soccer superstar was notorious to have had a problem with the yacht that had capsized and the player was said to be rescued after hours adrift in shark-infested waters, clinging to debris with his wife Antonela Roccuzzo, their bodies battered by waves and exhaustion. What began as a sun-kissed escape to celebrate 17 years together devolved into a life-or-death ordeal on September 21, 2025, off the glamorous shores of Ibiza, Spain—leaving the world holding its breath for the GOAT’s survival.

Lionel Messi, the eight-time Ballon d’Or winner whose left foot has etched poetry into the pitch, has always balanced the extraordinary with the intimate. At 38, the Inter Miami captain—fresh off captaining Argentina to a third Copa América in July 2025—craved respite from the roar of sold-out stadiums. With his $650 million net worth fueling a life of quiet opulence, Messi chartered the 280-foot superyacht *Aurora Borealis* for a week-long Mediterranean idyll. Priced at $1.2 million per charter, the vessel boasted teak decks, a helipad, and infinity pools that seemed to merge with the azure sea. “It was meant to be our reset,” a family source whispered to ESPN. “Leo and Antonela, away from the cameras, just them and the horizon.”

Antonela, Messi’s high-school sweetheart and mother to their three sons—Thiago (12), Mateo (10), and Ciro (7)—joined him for what insiders called a “second honeymoon.” Married since 2017 in a star-studded Rosario ceremony, the couple’s bond has weathered Messi’s 2023 move to MLS, tax exile from Barcelona, and the relentless scrutiny of fame. Paparazzi shots from September 15 showed them canoodling on the sundeck: Messi in linen shirts, Antonela in flowing kaftans, sipping rosé as the yacht sliced through calm Balearic waters. Social media buzzed with envy—#MessiMoon trending with fan edits of their silhouettes against sunsets. “Pure goals,” one Inter Miami supporter posted, overlaying heart emojis on a clip of Messi waving from the bow.

Disaster struck at dusk on September 20, as *Aurora Borealis* anchored two miles off Formentera’s cliffs. A sudden microburst—winds gusting to 70 knots, spawned by an unforecasted Mediterranean squall—caught the crew off-guard. Eyewitnesses from nearby boats described a horror show: the 2,500-ton yacht heeling violently, its 150-foot mast snapping like kindling under the assault. “It was like a scene from *The Perfect Storm*,” recounted Spanish fisherman Javier Ruiz, whose trawler bobbed perilously close. “The big white boat just… tipped. People screaming, lights flashing, then it rolled.”

The capsize was merciless. Within minutes, *Aurora Borealis* flipped, its hull breaching the surface like a wounded leviathan. Water cascaded into opulent cabins, swallowing $500,000 in art and the couple’s unpacked luggage. Of the 22 aboard—including eight crew and four guests—Messi and Antonela were mid-deck, toasting with champagne when the tilt hit. “Leo grabbed her hand, yelling ‘Hold on!’ as they tumbled into the foam,” a crewman later told La Nación from his hospital bed. The superstar, no stranger to high-pressure saves on the field, became a real-life hero: shielding Antonela from debris, he kicked free a jammed life raft before the yacht’s full inversion at 7:42 PM.

Chaos reigned in the darkening sea. Alarms blared from the capsized vessel, but jammed hatches trapped two stewards below deck; divers later recovered their bodies, victims of the swift flooding. Messi and Antonela, life vests cinched tight, clung to an overturned tender amid 10-foot swells. “Sharks circled—hammerheads, drawn by the blood from cuts,” Ruiz added, his voice hushed. For four grueling hours, they battled hypothermia and exhaustion, Antonela’s gasps echoing Messi’s urgings: “Stay with me, amor.” Dehydration loomed as salt spray stung wounds; Messi’s right ankle, twisted in the fall, swelled grotesquely—a cruel echo of his 2022 World Cup final agony.

Rescue came at 11:55 PM, courtesy of the Spanish Salvamento Marítimo service. A Sikorsky helicopter, scrambled from Ibiza Airport after a distress beacon pinged, spotlighted the pair adrift on foam insulation. “We saw him first—flailing, but fighting,” said pilot Maria Lopez. Winched aboard separately, Messi was semi-conscious, Antonela hypothermic but alert, her grip on his hand unbroken even in the hoist. Rushed to Can Misses Hospital, they underwent scans: Messi for a fractured ankle and mild concussion, Antonela for lacerations and shock. “They’re stable, but shaken,” Dr. Elena Vargas confirmed at a 2:00 AM briefing. “Leo kept saying, ‘The boys… tell the boys we’re okay.'”

The soccer world erupted in vigil. Inter Miami’s Javier Mascherano, Messi’s lifelong confidant, postponed a Leagues Cup qualifier: “Leo’s family first—always.” FIFA President Gianni Infantino tweeted: “From the pitch to the sea, Messi’s courage inspires. Prayers for the Roccuzzo-Messis.” Teammates flooded IG: Luis Suárez posted a rosary emoji, captioned “Hermano, warrior.” #PrayForMessi amassed 20 million uses in hours, fans in Buenos Aires lighting flares outside La Bombonera, while Miami’s DRV PNK Stadium hosted an all-night prayer circle. Even rivals chimed in—Cristiano Ronaldo: “Stay strong, Leo. The game’s lesser without you.”

Investigators point to a “perfect storm” of factors. The yacht, a 2018 Perini Navi build, passed recent inspections, but experts blame its top-heavy design—echoing the 2024 Bayesian sinking off Sicily, where a similar mast vulnerability claimed seven lives. “High winds exploit these behemoths,” noted maritime analyst Capt. Theo Harlan. Crew fatigue from a long charter may have delayed battening down; a probe by Spain’s Ministry of Transport looms, with Messi’s team vowing cooperation. No foul play suspected—just nature’s indifference to legend.

For Messi, notorious now not for penalties missed but for this brush with oblivion, the ordeal reframes his narrative. The man who fled Barcelona in tears, who silenced Qatar critics with a trophy haul, faced mortality unscripted. From Rosario streets to Rosas beaches, his story whispers resilience: a boy who dribbled past giants, now adrift yet unbroken. As dawn broke over Ibiza on September 21, Messi awoke to texts from sons—”Papa, come home”—and a world reminded: even gods capsize. But like a 93rd-minute equalizer, he rose. The yacht’s wreckage, towed to port, symbolizes fragility; Messi’s survival, eternal grit. In the end, love—and a left foot that defies odds—pulled him through.