"Messi" redirects here. For other uses, see Messi (disambiguation).
This name uses Spanish naming customs: the first or paternal family name is Messi and the second or maternal family name is Cuccittini.
Lionel Messi
Lionel Messi 2017.jpg
Messi with Argentina in November 2017
Personal information
Full name Lionel Andrés Messi Cuccittini[1]
Date of birth 24 June 1987 (age 30)
Place of birth Rosario, Argentina
Height 1.70 m (5 ft 7 in)[2]
Playing position Forward
Club information
Current team
Barcelona
Number 10
Youth career
1994–2000 Newell's Old Boys
2001–2004 Barcelona
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2003–2004 Barcelona C 10 (5)
2004–2005 Barcelona B 22 (6)
2004– Barcelona 410 (374)
National team‡
2004–2005 Argentina U20 18 (14)
2008 Argentina U23 5 (2)
2005– Argentina 123 (61)
Honours[show]
International goals Career achievements Comparisons to Cristiano Ronaldo
Films
Messi (2014) Messi (2017)
v t e
Lionel Andrés Messi Cuccittini[note 1] (Spanish pronunciation: [ljoˈnel anˈdɾez ˈmesi] (About this sound listen);[A] born 24 June 1987) 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 a record-tying five Ballon d'Or awards,[note 2] four of which he won consecutively, and a record-tying four European Golden Shoes.[note 3] He has spent his entire professional career with Barcelona, where he has won 30 trophies, including eight La Liga titles, four UEFA Champions League titles, and five Copas del Rey. Both a prolific goalscorer and a creative playmaker, Messi holds the records for most official goals scored in La Liga (374), a La Liga season (50), a club football season in Europe (73), a calendar year (91), El Clásico (25), as well as those for most assists made in La Liga (149) and the Copa América (11). He has scored over 600 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. 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 Ballon d'Or and FIFA World Player of the Year award by record voting margins.
