Lionel Messi

ArgentinaForward · Argentina · Born 24 June 1987, Rosario

Full name
Lionel Andrés Messi Cuccittini
Nationality
Argentine (also Spanish)
Date of birth
24 June 1987
Height
1.70 m
Position
Forward · Right wing / Centre forward
Foot
Left
Ballon d'Or wins
8 (all-time record)
International caps
190+

Career Statistics by Club

ClubPeriodCountryAppsGoals
Barcelona2004–2021Spain778672
Paris Saint-Germain2021–2023France7532
Inter Miami2023–USA

International — Argentina

Messi has captained Argentina to the country's most successful international era since the 1980s. After years of near-misses — runner-up at the 2014 World Cup and three Copa América finals — he led Argentina to the 2021 Copa América (their first major senior trophy in 28 years), the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar, and the 2024 Copa América.

TournamentYearResult
FIFA World Cup2006Quarter-final
FIFA World Cup2010Quarter-final
FIFA World Cup2014Runners-up — Golden Ball
FIFA World Cup2018Round of 16
FIFA World Cup2022Winner — Golden Ball
Copa América2021Winner — Player of the Tournament
Copa América2024Winner

Major Club Honours

Individual Honours

Career Overview

Messi joined Barcelona's La Masia academy at age thirteen after the club agreed to fund his growth-hormone treatment. He made his first-team debut in 2004 aged 17 and remained at Barcelona for the next seventeen seasons, becoming the club's all-time top goalscorer with 672 goals. Across that period he won every major club honour available and was the central figure in arguably the most influential club side of the modern era — the Pep Guardiola Barcelona of 2008–2012.

A financial-fair-play crisis at Barcelona forced his free-transfer departure to Paris Saint-Germain in 2021, where he won two Ligue 1 titles. In 2023 he joined Inter Miami in MLS, beginning a new chapter of his career in North American football.

Related: All players · Competitions · Esteban Cambiasso