Lionel Messi is an Internationally famous soccer player. He has set records for the  number of goals he has scored and has been awarded individual trophies on his way to becoming one of the sport's top players. 


Before wining the FIFA Ballon d'Or five times, winning an Olympic gold medal, and reaching the World Cup finals, before signing endorsement contracts with Lay's Adidas, Gillette, Pepsi, and Samsung, before earning over $70 million in just 2015... Here is a quick account of his early years and background.

Jorge and Celia Messi welcomed their son Lionel Andreas Messi into the world on June 24th, 1987 in Santa Fe, Argentina. Lionel was introduced to soccer by his parents, who were of Spanish and Italian origin and had three other kids. 

Leo had already developed a passion for the sport at the young age of 4, and his father was coaching him at the family's neighborhood team, Grid Olli. Messi joined the youth division of Newell's Old Boys two years after he began playing. They only lost one game in four years, and Messi scored roughly 234 goals. 

This team was unstoppable in every way. They acquired the moniker "machine of 87," which was inspired by the players' birth years. Before being found to have a hormone deficit that was stunting his growth, he was a rising talent playing for Newell. 


In an effort to help him reach his potential, his parents started giving him daily growth hormone injections which were progressively depleting their finances. The family looked to the soccer clubs for financial assistance with these medical expenses, but few were able to do so due to the collapse of Southern America's economy and just the high cost of healthcare in general.

He joined FC Barcelona's youth academy at the age of 13. His contract was first scribbled on a napkin since the organization was so eager to sign him. From Argentina, he and his father made their way to Spain.

His citizenship was jumbled up as a result of issues with his transfer from Newell to Barcelona, which limited the amount of time he could spend on the field. He wasn't finally registered with the Spanish football association until twelve months had passed. He could finally enter the field and kick some decent soccer balls. Messi progressed through the youth ranks, representing five different teams before the attention of the major leagues.

Messi made his professional debut at the age of 17 against RCD Espaol. The next year, he scored his first goal, becoming FC Barcelona's youngest player in history to do so. At the age of 18, Messi signed a five-year contract to play for Barcelona in 2005, and he soon established himself as the team's outstanding player. Over 35 games, he scored 17 goals while fighting through ailments and even earning the nickname "the Messiah" from the media.


At the ripe old age of 21, Messi had not only signed a new deal with his team worth 7.8 million dollars, making him the highest-paid player for Barcelona in just four years, but he had also represented his native Argentina in the 2008 Summer Olympics and won gold.