Did OpenAI just make Messi the GOAT of prompting?

Leo Messi has built a career on seeing possibilities others do not. Now, away from the pitch, he is exploring another kind of creativity: how artificial intelligence can help fans express their passion for football.

In a new global collaboration with OpenAI, Messi has used ChatGPT Images to create a match-day look inspired by Argentina’s colours. Shared on his Instagram, the image marks the beginning of a first-of-its-kind partnership between OpenAI and one of the world’s most recognisable athletes, and arrives at a defining moment for sport, technology, and culture.

This is the first global football season of the AI era. For fans, that does not simply mean new ways to follow scores or track statistics. It also means new ways to participate: to create, remix, imagine, and share what support for a team looks like.

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Messi’s first contribution to the collaboration is intentionally simple. He asked ChatGPT to imagine him cheering in a new way, starting with Argentina’s colours. The result is a playful visual expression of national pride and an invitation for fans around the world to do the same with their own teams.

“I’ve always loved seeing how people experience football differently in each country. I turned to ChatGPT to imagine myself cheering in a new way, and I started with Argentina’s colours, of course. This season, I think many fans will discover new ways to follow the matches, better understand what happens on the field, and show their support with AI,” Messi said.

The partnership positions AI not as something separate from the emotional experience of football, but as a new layer within it. With ChatGPT Images, fans can turn text prompts into visuals inspired by their national colours, iconic football moments, or personal rituals around match day. A simple idea such as a celebratory image for friends, a creative take on a team’s colours, can become something shareable within seconds.

To help fans get started, the prompt used by Messi is being featured in ChatGPT Images as part of the preset styles collection, allowing users to create their own versions in the colours of the teams they support.

The collaboration will continue across the official @chatgpt and @leomessi channels in the coming weeks, following Messi as he explores how ChatGPT can be used in everyday context, from creative expression to staying informed about matches, teams, and tournament storylines.

For OpenAI, the partnership is a cultural statement as much as a product moment. For Messi, it is a new way to engage with the global community that has followed him throughout his career. And for fans, it is an invitation to enter the football season not only as spectators, but as creators.

As the tournament conversation builds around the world, Messi and ChatGPT are asking a simple question: what could support look like if every fan had a new way to imagine it?

MARKETING-INTERACTIVE has reached out for more information. 

OpenAI is not alone in recognising that this will be the first major football moment to unfold in a newly AI-shaped world. Lenovo has also moved to position itself at the intersection of football and artificial intelligence, announcing a global partnership with David Beckham as it expands its role as the official technology partner of the FIFA World Cup 2026 and FIFA Women’s World Cup 2027.

While OpenAI’s Messi collaboration focuses on fan creativity and self-expression through ChatGPT Images, Lenovo is approaching the same cultural moment through sports-focused AI solutions designed to improve team performance, enhance fan experiences, and streamline operations across the football ecosystem.

The two partnerships point to a broader shift in how technology brands are treating football’s next global cycle: not simply as a sponsorship platform, but as a showcase for how AI may change the way the sport is played, watched, understood, and shared. 

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