​Lionel Messi, one of soccer’s wealthiest and most famous stars, has become the subject of conspiracy theories from some World Cup watchers who accuse FIFA of displaying favoritism toward him and the Argentine team, which is set for a semifinal match against England on Wednesday afternoon.Messi is one of soccer’s wealthiest stars, with a net worth of $1.1 billion. (Photo by Marcelo Endelli/Getty Images)Getty ImagesMemes of Messi dressed up like a princess—some AI-generated—and cozying up to FIFA president Gianni Infantino have spread across social media, some of which have garnered hundreds of thousands of likes, as some World Cup viewers accuse the governing body of displaying favoritism toward the soccer legend.AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementOne post on X has garnered more than 1 million views and 90,000 likes since Tuesday, accusing Infantino—who is pictured smiling—of being happy because he has, allegedly, “successfully taken out all of Messi’s competition.”A post on TikTok, liked more than 2 million times, baselessly accuses Messi of offering to pay “millions” for additional penalty kicks, adding to a chorus of social media users who have accused him of “cheating.”Critics have referred to Messi as “FIFA’s princess” as far back as the 2022 World Cup, but allegations of favoritism picked up steam this year after Argentina won a hotly contested match with Egypt to win 3-2 in the final minutes of the game.Others have pointed out what has been a historically easy path to the semifinals for Argentina, which will take on No. 4-ranked England after not playing any of the top 13 teams in the FIFA rankings in the tournament so far.AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementEgypt’s coach Hossam Hassan called the game “unfair” and said his team “suffered injustice” after referees voided an Egyptian goal due to a foul and apparently declined to investigate a potential foul by Argentina. Hassan suggested FIFA “wanted to keep the world champion in the competition. Perhaps they wanted Messi to stay in the running.” The Egyptian Football Association also said after the game it “cannot remain silent,” saying “several key incidents raised serious concerns and left profound questions about the consistency and fairness of decisions that directly influenced the course of the game.” The Argentine Football Federation also said last week it was investigating a potential hack of its systems after mass emails were sent to reporters calling for “justice” for the Egyptian team. “The robbery will not go unnoticed,” the email said, alleging Argentina won the game thanks to “corrupt calls.”Lionel Scaloni, manager of Argentina’s national team, last week dismissed claims FIFA displays favoritism toward Messi and Argentina. “Honestly, people have been saying those kinds of things about Argentina for a very long time,” Scaloni said. “Social media magnifies everything. That’s where the debates begin. But