Lionel Messi
Soccer Player
Star soccer forward who gained world fame while playing with FC Barcelona and as captain of Argentina's national team. He won the Ballon d'Or four straight years from 2009 to 2012 and he received the Golden Ball Award after leading the Argentinian national team to the World Cup Championship game in 2014. In August 2021 he left FC Barcelona to play for Paris Saint-Germain FC.
He was diagnosed with a growth hormone deficiency when he was 11 years old and his local club, Newell's Old Boys, did not want to pay to treat it, so he moved to Spain to play for FC Barcelona.
When he was 25, he became the youngest player in history to score 200 goals in La Liga and in March 2012, he became the first player in Champions League history to score five goals in a single match.
He grew up in Argentina with his parents Jorge and Celia, and his siblings: Maria, Matias, and Rodrigo. He married Antonella Roccuzzo in 2017. He and Antonella have sons named Mateo, Thiago and Ciro.
Many pundits began calling him the next Pele after he won the 2009 UEFA Super Cup with Barcelona.