Lionel Messi

Lionel Andrés Messi was born on June 24, 1987, in Rosario, Argentina. He joined Newell's Old Boys as a child, but moved to Barcelona in 2000, aged thirteen, after the club agreed to support treatment for his growth-hormone deficiency. He entered Barcelona's La Masia academy and made his first-team debut under Frank Rijkaard against Espanyol in October 2004. In May 2005, he became Barcelona's youngest league scorer at that time when he scored against Albacete, assisted by Ronaldinho. His early years paired exceptional close control, dribbling and left-footed finishing with recurring muscle injuries, yet he quickly became central to Barcelona's attack thereafter.

At Barcelona, Messi helped form one of football's most productive sides. Under Pep Guardiola, Barcelona won a treble of La Liga, Copa del Rey, and UEFA Champions League in 2008-09, then repeated the treble in 2014-15. He scored in the 2009 and 2011 Champions League finals and created a decisive goal for Luis Suárez in the 2015 final. In 2012, he scored 91 goals for club and country, surpassing Gerd Müller's widely recognized calendar-year record. His 474 La Liga goals remain the competition's record, and his 672 goals for Barcelona are the club's most. Before leaving, he won ten Spanish league titles and

seven Copa del Rey trophies while collecting six Ballons d'Or as a Barcelona player. Financial restrictions prevented Barcelona from renewing his contract in 2021, despite an announced agreement, and he joined Paris Saint-Germain. With PSG, he won two Ligue 1 titles and added another Ballon d'Or in 2021, awarded largely for his international achievement. In June 2023, he signed for Major League Soccer's Inter Miami. He captained the club to the 2023 Leagues Cup, scoring ten goals in seven matches and converting a penalty in the final shootout against Nashville. The tournament supplied Inter Miami's first major trophy, and Messi was

named its best player. For Argentina, Messi debuted in 2005, shortly before turning eighteen. He played at five World Cups and lost the 2014 final to Germany before leading Argentina at the 2022 tournament in Qatar. He scored seven goals there, including two in the final against France, which ended 3-3 after extra time. Argentina won the subsequent penalty shootout, giving Messi his first World Cup. He had already led Argentina to the 2021 Copa América, ending a 28-year wait for a senior men's title, and then won the 2024 Copa América. In 2023, he became the first South American man to reach 100 international goals.