An iconic kick-off is set to mark the start of a new era of holidays when Royal Caribbean International’s Icon of the Seas debuts January 2024.
The world’s largest cruise line has revealed sports icon Lionel Messi is the official Icon of Icon of the Seas. As the Icon of the ship, Messi will welcome the new ship at a naming celebration in Miami.
“I’m thrilled and honoured to join the Royal Caribbean family to celebrate the arrival of the game changing Icon of the Seas,” said Lionel Messi, Royal Caribbean International’s Icon of Icon. “Icon is beyond anything else that’s out there for family holidays, with incredible never-before-seen features, all designed for making memories together.”
Messi’s new role follows the recent announcement of Royal Caribbean and Inter Miami CF’s unprecedented partnership in which the cruise line is the Club’s Main Partner and Official Holiday Partner. Royal Caribbean and Inter Miami CF will also celebrate the arrival of Icon with the next phase of the partnership – details which will be revealed at a later date.
“Icon of the Seas is the culmination of more than 50 years of delivering memorable holidays, and it’s set to live up to its name in more ways than one when it changes the travel industry in January 2024,” said Michael Bayley, president and CEO, Royal Caribbean International.
“It’s that ability to make such a widespread impact and change the status quo that the Icon of Icon must personify, and Lionel Messi has proven to be the perfect example of that for years in the world of sports and most recently in introducing a new era of excitement and passion for fútbol in Miami and the U.S.”
As part of a longstanding maritime tradition, Messi will take part in the naming celebration for Icon in January 2024 in Miami. The Icon of Icon will have the honour of bestowing safekeeping onto the new ship, its crew and the millions of families who will create memories of a lifetime on board in the years to come.
