Early life and career
Lionel Messi was born on June 24, 1987, in Rosario, Argentina. As a young boy, he played soccer with his friends in the streets and on the local team. When he was just 11 years old, he was diagnosed with a growth hormone deficiency. Messi’s family was unable to pay for the treatment, so he was offered the chance to move to Barcelona, where he could receive the treatment for free. Messi accepted the offer and moved to Barcelona with his family.
Messi began playing for Barcelona’s youth team, and it was soon clear that he was a special talent. He made his debut for the Barcelona senior team in 2004, and he has been a key player for the club ever since. Messi has won numerous individual and team awards, including 10 La Liga titles and four Champions League titles. He is widely considered to be one of the greatest soccer players of all time.
Rise to prominence
Lionel Messi is one of the most successful and popular soccer players in the world. He has played for FC Barcelona and the Argentina national team. Messi has won many awards, including the FIFA World Player of the Year award.
Messi was born in Rosario, Argentina, in 1987. He began playing soccer at a young age. Messi’s natural talent for the sport was quickly evident. At the age of thirteen, he was recruited by FC Barcelona. Messi moved to Barcelona and joined the club’s youth academy.
Messi made his debut for FC Barcelona’s senior team in 2004. He quickly became an important player for the club. In 2006, he helped Barcelona win the Spanish league title. The following year, he helped the team win the UEFA Champions League.
Messi has continued to be a key player for Barcelona and the Argentina national team. In 2012, he helped Barcelona win the Spanish league title again. In 2014, he helped Argentina win the FIFA World Cup.
Messi is one of the most popular soccer players in the world. He has a large number of fans in Argentina and Spain. Messi is also popular in other parts of the world, including the United States.
International success
Lionel Messi is an Argentine professional footballer who plays as a forward for Spanish club Barcelona and the Argentina national team. Often considered the best player in the world and regarded by many as the greatest of all time, Messi has won a record-tying five Ballon d’Or awards, four of which he won consecutively, and a record five European Golden Shoes. He has spent his entire professional career with Barcelona, where he has won 32 trophies, including nine La Liga titles, four UEFA Champions League titles and six Copas del Rey. A prolific goalscorer, Messi holds the records for most goals scored in La Liga, a La Liga season (50), a football season (60), and a calendar year (91). He has scored over 700 senior career goals for club and country.
Born and raised in central Argentina, Messi was diagnosed with a growth hormone deficiency as a child. At age 13, he relocated to Spain to join Barcelona, who agreed to pay for his medical treatment. After a fast progression through Barcelona’s youth academy, Messi made his competitive debut aged 17 in October 2004. Although he began playing as a left winger, Messi soon established himself as a central attacking midfielder before moving to his natural position of right wing, where he quickly became the team’s star player. His first uninterrupted campaign came in the 2008–09 season, during which he helped Barcelona achieve the first treble in Spanish football. At 22 years old, Messi won the 2009 Ballon d’Or and the 2009 FIFA World Player of the Year award by record voting margins.
Three successful seasons followed, with Messi winning three consecutive FIFA Ballons d’Or, including an unprecedented fourth. During the 2011–12 season, he set the La Liga and European records for most goals scored in a single season, while establishing himself as Barcelona’s all-time top scorer in official competitions with his 233rd goal. The following two seasons, Messi won his fourth and fifth Ballons d’Or, becoming the first player to win five Ballons d’Or awards, as well as the first player to win three consecutive Ballons d’Or. His play during the 2012–13 season has been described as “peerless”, leading
Individual awards and accomplishments
Lionel Messi is an Argentine professional footballer who plays as a forward for Spanish club Barcelona and the Argentina national team. Often considered the best player in the world and rated by many in the sport as the greatest of all time, Messi is the only football player in history to win five FIFA Ballon d’Or awards, four of which he won consecutively, and the first player to win three European Golden Shoes. With Barcelona he has won eight La Liga titles, four UEFA Champions League titles, six Copas del Rey, three Supercopas de España, two Club World Cups, and an Inter-City Fairs Cup.
Messi has scored over 700 senior career goals for club and country. His trademark is his finishing, although he is also a prolific goalscorer and playmaker. He holds the records for most goals scored in La Liga (435), a La Liga and European league season (50), most hat-tricks in La Liga (36) and the Copa América (7), and most assists in La Liga (174) and the Copa América (11). He has scored in 21 consecutive La Liga appearances, equaling the all-time record.
In March 2012, Messi overtook José Luis Chilavert’s record for most goals scored by a footballer in a professional career with his 233rd goal. As of November 2020, Messi has scored 703 goals in 834 appearances for Barcelona and Argentina.
Legacy
Lionel Messi is an Argentine professional footballer who plays as a forward for Spanish club Barcelona and the Argentina national team. Often considered the best player in the world and regarded by many as the greatest of all time, Messi has won a record-tying five Ballon d’Or awards, four of which he won consecutively, and a record five European Golden Shoes. He has spent his entire professional career with Barcelona, where he has won 32 trophies, including nine La Liga titles, four UEFA Champions League titles, and six Copas del Rey. A prolific goalscorer, Messi is the all-time leading goalscorer in La Liga, as well as in Barcelona’s history.
Born and raised in central Argentina, Messi was diagnosed with a growth hormone deficiency as a child. At age 13, he relocated to Spain to join Barcelona, who agreed to pay for his medical treatment. After a fast progression through Barcelona’s youth academy, Messi made his competitive debut aged 17 in October 2004. Despite being injury-prone during his early career, he established himself as an integral player for the club within the next three years, finishing 2007 as a finalist for both the Ballon d’Or and FIFA World Player of the Year award, a feat he repeated the following year. His first uninterrupted campaign came in the 2008–09 season, during which he helped Barcelona achieve the first treble in Spanish football. At 22 years old, Messi won the 2009 Ballon d’Or and the 2009 FIFA World Player of the Year award by record voting margins.
Three successful seasons followed, with Messi winning three consecutive FIFA Ballons d’Or, as well as three European Golden Shoes. During the 2011–12 season, he set the La Liga and European records for most goals scored in a single season, while establishing himself as Barcelona’s all-time top scorer in official competitions in March 2012. The following two seasons, Messi continued his goal-scoring form, breaking the all-time goalscoring records in a single La Liga season and for most hat-tricks in La Liga, while establishing himself as Barcelona’s all-time leading scorer in official club competitions. Messi regained his best form during the 2014–15 campaign
