Barcelona forward Lionel Messi to tie the knot with childhood sweetheart Antonella Roccuzzo

Barcelona: Football superstar Lionel Messi is to marry his long-term partner and mother of his two children, Antonella Roccuzzo, in their hometown of Rosario on June 30, the Argentina striker revealed on Thursday.

“The wedding will be held in Rosario, Argentina, on 30 June,” Messi’s personal communications agency 6Pointer said.

The ceremony between the five-time Ballon d’Or winner and his childhood sweetheart is to be held at Rosario Cathedral and many of Messi’s Barcelona teammates are expected, chief amongst them the couple’s closest friends, Uruguay striker Luis Suarez and his wife Sofia Balbi.

According to Spanish news outlet Marca, invitations have been extended to all 21 of the other Barcelona first team squad members but former manager Luis Enrique has not been invited.

Messi turns 30 on 24 June and Roccuzzo is 29 and the pair have been living together for nine years and have two children, four-year-old Thiago and baby Mateo.