Carlos Chandia, a former Chilean referee, recently shared an intriguing story about his experience officiating a match involving Lionel Messi.

During the 2007 Copa America semi-final between Argentina and Mexico, Chandia chose not to book Messi for a handball. This decision was made in exchange for Messi's match-worn shirt, which he later received in the dressing room.

Referee's Decision and Its Impact

The Chilean former referee Carlos Chandia explained that there was no immediate goal-scoring opportunity for Mexico when the incident occurred. Argentina was leading 3-0 with goals from Gabriel Heinze, Roman Riquelme, and Messi himself. With only two-and-a-half minutes remaining, booking Messi would have meant he missed the final due to suspension.

"There were two-and-a-half minutes left, and the score was 3-0. Showing him a yellow card would have taken away his chance of playing in the Copa America final," Chandia stated.

Lionel Messi gave his shirt to Chandia

Chandia recounted how Messi agreed to his unusual request after the game. The Argentina player was saved by the referee, and in return, he offered him the match shirt.

"He gave me the shirt in the dressing room afterwards. In fact, he wanted to take it off on the pitch and I told him: 'No, no, no, no; take it to the dressing room'. And he came to the dressing room with the jersey and left it there for me," Chandia recalled.

The decision not to penalize Messi did not affect the outcome of the tournament's final match. Argentina eventually lost to Brazil 3-0 in Venezuela. Julio Baptista, Roberto Ayala, and Dani Alves scored for Brazil, securing their victory over Argentina.

Despite this incident not influencing Argentina's performance in the final, it had personal repercussions for Chandia. His actions led to him being overlooked as a referee for that decisive match. Nonetheless, he secured a piece of football history by obtaining Messi's jersey.

The Argentina legend has gone on to win various accolades for his club and country since then. Although Messi won a lot of trophies with Barcelona shortly after 2007, his first title with the country came in the 2021 Copa America, followed by the World Cup in 2022. The football genius helped Los Albicelestes to their second straight Copa America title this year.