Argentine football star Lionel Messi has married his childhood sweetheart in his home town among a legion of celebrities and famous footballers.
Messi, 30, and his fiancée Antonella Roccuzzo hosted their wedding at a luxury hotel on Saturday in the city of Rosario.
About 250 guests attended the ceremony, including Barcelona teammates Neymar, Luis Suarez and Gerard Pique, who was joined by his wife, Colombian pop star Shakira.
About 150 journalists were allowed to cover the event, but had no direct access to the ceremony or the party afterwards.
Messi grew up in a lower-middle-class neighbourhood in Rosario along with two brothers and a sister.
His bride, 29, is the cousin of a close Messi friend and the couple have been friends since meeting at a yoMessi and Ms Roccuzzo stayed in touch after he left to play football in Spain at 13 and they eventually started a romantic relationship in the late 2000s.
Ms Roccuzzo moved to Barcelona, where the couple live with their two sons, Thiago, four, and Mateo, one, but often return to their native Rosario.
"Messi could have had this wedding wherever he liked - Dubai, the moon. He can pay any plane ticket to anyone, but he chose the city that's in his heart," said Leandro Macaya.
Hi! I am a robot. I just upvoted you! I found similar content that readers might be interested in:
https://reportuk.org/2017/07/01/lionel-messi-marries-childhood-sweetheart-in-lavish-argentinian-ceremony/