Barcelona forward Lionel Messi was recently convicted on charges of tax fraud and sentenced to 21 months in jail. The Catalan club have now engineered a PR campaign aimed at supporting the Argentine, but it has been ripped apart by fans on twitter.
La Liga champions Barcelona have started an online support campaign to back their star player Lionel Messi. However their choice of words has been exceptionally poor, with the Catalan club calling for fans to tweet #weareallleomessi in connection to his conviction.
While a football fan’s love and idolatry of Lionel Messi is one thing, supporting him despite his conviction in a crime and claiming to be the same as him is quite another. The campaign has been met with instant disapproval, with hundreds of fans expressing their rage at the hashtag.
It’s time to show our support: #WeAreAllLeoMessi. Add your voice to the campaign https://t.co/ld9dyidoXO pic.twitter.com/mNnfeZxl17
— FC Barcelona (@FCBarcelona) July 9, 2016
Here are the angry responses from fans the world over.
Teams should worry more about providing financial education for their athletes than whitewashing their crimes. #WeAreAllLeoMessi
— Ian Query (@ianquery) July 9, 2016
Actually this #WeAreAllLeoMessi is not even close to annoying, it’s offensive https://t.co/bfUJlZnvaq
— Paul Kelso (@pkelso) July 9, 2016
#WeAreAllLeoMessi because we can all afford to dodge paying taxes of €4.1 million.
— Rob Murphy (@MCMProds) July 9, 2016
#WeAreAllLeoMessi – Oh wait, we’re not, because we pay our taxes and he quite clearly doesn’t. He’s not the victim. Shameful from Barcelona.
— Liam Canning (@OffsideLiam) July 9, 2016
#WeAreAllLeoMessi? Actually, no, we are not all Leo Messi because we pay the taxes that we owe the state without having to be taken to court
— Tom Adams (@tomEurosport) July 9, 2016
The #WeAreAllLeoMessi hashtag from @FCBarcelona makes no sense. Especially in a Spanish economy as troubled as it is.
— Pankaj Saini (@celliniperseus) July 9, 2016
Its time to show our support. Lets not pay our taxes. #WeAreAllLeoMessi https://t.co/Szm9ElE5B5
— Pedro Santos Silva (@dazano19) July 9, 2016
#WeAreAllLeoMessi pic.twitter.com/GxlLV2bkRp
— Jack Grimse (@JackGrimse) July 9, 2016
#WeAreAllLeoMessi cus who hasn’t defrauded Spain for over €4mil and gotten away with it?
— rude tang clan (@Satans_satin) July 9, 2016
#WeAreAllLeoMessi – REALLY? I don’t remember moving to Spain becoming a great footballer and then double teaming the tax man with my dad.
— Kangarubick_LFC (@Griml3xx) July 9, 2016
#WeAreAllLeoMessi is one of the worst hashtags ever. A punch in the face of ppl who do hard work on a low pay and yet still pay their taxes
— Norissima (@__B_E_E) July 9, 2016
#WeAreAllLeoMessi has to be one of the dumbest campaigns ever. Basically saying ‘he’s a tax evader but he makes us relevant so support him’
— Blonde Goat (@GoonerXhaka) July 9, 2016
Why do @FCBarcelona want people to show sympathy for a multi millionaire who has been convicted of tax evasion? #WeAreAllLeoMessi
— Ruari McHale (@RuariMUFC) July 9, 2016