According to superstar Lionel Messi, EURO is not the most difficult tournament because it does not have the presence of three world champions from South America: Brazil, Argentina and Uruguay.

Mbappe and Messi once faced off in the World Cup final .

In early June, Mbappe made controversial comments about the two tournaments EURO and World Cup: “For me, competition in EURO is tougher than World Cup, there is more pressure. Here, everyone The teams all know each other, and their strategies are basically very similar.

There are many strong teams in Europe, we often face each other in the Nations League, which are high-level matches. That is the advantage Europeans have over South Americans. Therefore, we are always ready for the World Cup. Brazil and Argentina do not have such quality opponents in South America. Football in South America is not as developed as in Europe. That’s why European teams regularly win world championships.”

In an interview with ESPN Argentina before the 2024 Copa America , Messi spoke out to refute Mbappe’s views. He said: “Well, it seems like everyone wants to promote the importance of the tournament they participate in.

EURO is obviously very important and has the strongest teams, but that tournament lacks three world champions. Mbappe forgot that in South America, Brazil has won the world championship 5 times, Argentina has won the world championship 3 times and Uruguay has won the championship twice. I think it cannot be said that EURO is the most difficult tournament. The best teams and world champions are all present at the World Cup. That’s why everyone wants to win this tournament.”

Mbappe and Messi are both in the preparation stage for two important tournaments this summer, EURO and Copa America. France and Argentina are considered strong candidates for the EURO and Copa America championships.