After Rodman, Kim Jong-un turns his attention to Messi

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un
wants to invite Argentine football megastar Lionel Messi to North Korea, 
a football official says, according to AFP on Tuesday.

Asian Football Confederation (AFC) executive committee member
Han Un-gyong, told an AFC gathering in Manila that
students at the Pyongyang International Football School loved Messi
and said she wanted the FC Barcelona player to visit the academy.

"When I go to the Pyongyang international school,
I ask them who they think is the best player," Han said.

She said the students knew about Messi, 27, and the players' names
because they were allowed to watch "everything" at the school.
Han said the football academy was "brainchild" of Kim Jong-un,
an avid sports fan who hosted ex-NBA player Dennis Rodman in
Pyongyang for a friendly match against the national basketball team in January.

With the visit of Rodman ― purportedly aimed at improving the
U.S.-North Korea relations ― causing a major controversy,
Messi's proposed visit would almost certainly cause another international stir.