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SYNOPSIS
EARLY YEARS
KING OF SPAIN: SOCCER CAREER
ACTIVISM AND FATHERHOOD
RELATED VIDEOS
Children's Activist, Soccer Player (1987)
Argentina native Lionel Messi has established
records for goals scored and won individual
awards en route to worldwide recognition as
the best player in soccer.
Synopsis
Born on June 24, 1987, in Rosario, Argentina, soccer player
Lionel Messi moved to Spain at the age of 13, after the FC
Barcelona club agreed to pay for hormone-deficiency
treatments. Messi became a star in his new country, scoring at
will while leading his club to championships. In 2012, he set a
record for most goals in a calendar year, and afterward was
named FIFA's "Player of the Year" a record fourth time.
Early Years
Lionel Messi was born Luis Lionel Andres Messi on June 24,
1987, in Rosario, Argentina. As a young boy, he tagged along
when his two older brothers played soccer with their friends,
unintimidated by the bigger boys. At the age of 8, he was
recruited to join the youth system of Newell's Old Boys, a
Rosario-based club. Recognizably smaller than most of the kids
in his age group, Messi was eventually diagnosed by doctors
as suffering from a hormone deficiency that restricted his
growth.
Messi's parents, Jorge and Ceclia, decided on a regimen of
nightly growth-hormone injections for their son, though it soon
proved impossible to pay several hundred dollars per month for
the medication. So, at the age of 13, when Messi was offered
the chance to train at soccer powerhouse FC Barcelona's
youth academy, La Masia, and have his medical bills covered
by the team, Messi's family picked up and moved across the Atlantic to make a new home in Spain.
King of Spain: Soccer Career
Although he was often homesick in his new country, Messi
moved quickly through the junior system ranks, and by the age
Lionel Messi Biography
QUICK FACTS
NAME
Lionel Messi
OCCUPATION
Children's Activist, Soccer
Player
BIRTH DATE
June 24, 1987 (age 27)
PLACE OF BIRTH
Rosario, Argentina
AKA
Lionel Messi
FULL NAME
Luis Lionel Andres Messi
NICKNAME
"La Pulga"
"Leo"
"Messidona"
ZODIAC SIGN
Cancer
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CITE THIS PAGE
moved quickly through the junior system ranks, and by the age
of 16, he had made his first appearance for Barcelona. Messi
put himself in the record books on May 1, 2005, as the
youngest player to ever score a goal for the franchise. That
same year, he led Argentina to the title in the under-20 World
Cup, scoring on a pair of penalty kicks to propel the team over
Nigeria.
Messi eventually grew to 5 feet and 7 inches, and with his short
stature, speed and relentless attacking style, he drew
comparisons to another famous Argentinean footballer: Diego
Maradona. Messi steered Barcelona to a wealth of success,
most notably in 2009, when the left-footer's team captured the
Champions League, La Liga, and Spanish Super Cup titles.
That same year, after two consecutive runner-up finishes, he
took home his first FIFA "World Player of the Year"
honor/Ballon d'Or award.
Even the great Maradona gushed about his fellow countryman.
"I see him as very similar to me," the retired player told the
BBC. "He's a leader and is offering lessons in beautiful football.
He has something different to any other player in the world."
Amazingly, the diminutive soccer wizard continued to improve,
discovering new ways to elude defenders while leading
Barcelona to La Liga and Spanish Super Cup championships in
2010 and 2011, as well as the '11 Champions League title.
Messi embarked on an all-out assault on the record books in
2012. He became the first player to score five goals in a
Champions League match in early March, and a few weeks
later he surpassed Cesar Rodriguez's club-record 232 goals to
become Barcelona's all-time leading scorer. By the end of
2012, Messi had accumulated an astounding 91 goals in club
and international play, eclipsing the 85 netted in a single
calendar year by Gerd Muller in 1972. Fittingly, he broke one
more record when he was named the FIFA Ballon d'Or winner
for the fourth time in January 2013. Messi led team Argentina to
the finals of the 2014 World Cup. Although his team lost to
Germany, he was named best player of the tournament.
Activism and Fatherhood
Almost universally regarded as the best player in the game, the
boyish Messi has become the commercial face of soccer with
endorsements from Adidas, Pepsi, EA Sports and Turkish
Airways, among other companies. Having signed an extension
with Barcelona that guarantees him a base salary of
QUOTES
Every time I start a year, I
start with the objective of
trying to achieve
everything, without
comparing it to how I've
done in other seasons.
Whether it's a friendly
match, or for points, or a
final, or any game I play
the same. I'm always trying
to be my best, first for my
team, for myself, for the
fans, and to try and win.
I am competitive and I
feel bad when we lose. You
can see it in me when
we've lost. I'm in a bad way.
I don't like to talk to
anyone.
I made sacrifices by
leaving Argentina, leaving
my family to start a new
life. I changed my friends,
my people. Everything. But
everything I did, I did for
football, to achieve my
dream.
No one plays with as
much joy as Messi does. He
plays like a child enjoying
the pasture, playing for the
pleasure of playing, not the
duty of winning.
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with Barcelona that guarantees him a base salary of
approximately $21 million per year through 2018, he is one of
the world's highest-paid athletes.
Although he is famously quiet and private off the field, Messi
has found ways to help out others in need. In 2007, he formed
the Leo Messi Foundation to provide opportunities for
disadvantaged youths. In early 2010, UNICEF named him a
goodwill ambassador, with a focus on fighting for children's
rights across the globe.
Messi became a father in November 2012, when his girlfriend,
Antonella Roccuzzo, gave birth to their son, Thiago.
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Retrieved 01:39, Sep 17, 2014, from
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"Luis Lionel Andres Messi," The Biography.com website, 2014,
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Chicago Style
Lionel Messi
I have fun like a child in
the street. When the day
comes when Im not
enjoying it, I will leave
football.
I've never stopped being
Argentine, and I've never
wanted to. I feel very proud
of being Argentine, even
though I left there. I've
been clear about this since
I was very young, and I
never wanted to change.
A player like him, 100% fit
or not, will always make
the difference. Messi is the
best player in the world,
simple as that.
aSomething deep in my
character allows me to
take the hits and get on
with trying to win. I've
always had this ability to
get up and get on with it.
I wasnt teased as a child
for my size. In fact I think I
had more affection
because I was small.
I am lucky, I live by my
passion and there are a lot
of people who work, doing
what they don't like and
are badly paid for that.
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messi-555732 (accessed Sep 17 2014).
CBE/CSE Style
Luis Lionel Andres Messi [Internet]. The Biography.com website; 2014 [cited 2014 Sep 17]
Available from: http://www.biography.com/people/lionel-messi-555732.
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