‘The Lionel Messi Experience’ is an interactive showcase of all things Messi
LA TimesLionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo are the best soccer players of their generation — and maybe any generation — and there really isn’t much separating the two. The Los Angeles exhibition, which opens Friday in a 30,000-square-foot studio and event space near where the Glendale and Golden State freeways intersect, takes visitors on an immersive, interactive exploration of everything Messi, from a recreation of his childhood bedroom in his family’s humble home in Rosario, Argentina, through his triumphs with Barcelona and the Argentina national team. “It’s super important that when you learn about his life you know it wasn’t all great,” said David Rosenfeld, co-founder of Primo Entertainment, a Miami-based company that worked with Messi to put the exhibition together. Rosenfeld said planning for “The Messi Experience” began more than 2 ½ years ago, before the player’s greatest triumph, Argentina’s World Cup win in Qatar in 2022, and before his move to Inter Miami and MLS last summer. “He was a big part of it.” An identical “Messi Experience” opened April 25 in Miami and has drawn more than 50,000 visitors, Rosenfeld said.