Argentinian television presenter Florencia Peña has resigned from Luzu TV after falsely announcing on air that Lionel Messi’s father Jorge Messi had died.
The incident occurred during a live broadcast of El Show del Verano on Luzu TV. Peña received the false information through her earpiece from the production team and repeated it on air without further verification.
She retracted the claim eight minutes after making it.
The erroneous announcement spread rapidly before members of the Messi family stepped in to deny it. The family confirmed that Jorge Messi, 68, is alive and recovering under medical care.
Peña issued a public apology on social media, expressing remorse over her role in the incident. “I apologise to the Messi family for the awful moment I imagine they are going through,” she said.
“I am deeply ashamed to have been the vehicle for this pain. I must clarify that this false information was provided to me during the live broadcast, as verified by the production team of the show, and I trusted it. Even so, I take responsibility for being part of the mistake, and that is why I decided to step aside and end my participation in Luzu,” she added.
Peña also personally contacted Lionel Messi’s mother Celia Cuccittini, who reportedly accepted her apology.
Luzu TV also issued a statement condemning the broadcast. “We deeply regret the incident that occurred on air during the programme,” the channel said. “For our channel, broadcasting sensitive information without proper prior verification is unacceptable.” Luzu TV management announced it had parted ways with all production personnel responsible for the error.
The controversy unfolded during Argentina’s 2026 FIFA World Cup campaign. Lionel Messi scored a hat-trick to give Argentina a 3-0 opening win over Algeria.
