Global football star Lionel Messi delighted fans after paying a surprise visit to Expo 2020 Dubai on Monday.
The Argentinian great – who was only in action for club side Paris St Germain on Sunday evening – swapped the pitch for the pavilions of the sprawling Dubai South site.
Messi, who recently clinched a record-breaking seventh Ballon d'Or award, carried a football during the trip as he posed near Expo's popular waterfall attraction.
The prolific forward, widely viewed as one of the best players in the history of the sport, met Sheikh Nahyan bin Mubarak, Minister of Tolerance and Co-existence, and Noura Al Kaabi, Minister of Culture and Youth, during his tour.
The former Barcelona player acts as an ambassador for the global extravaganza.
In July, Expo organisers released a video showing him kicking a ball over the famed Al Wasl dome, to mark the three-month countdown to the event.
