Lionel Messi is an Argentine professional footballer (soccer). At age 10, he was diagnosed with a growth hormone deficiency. This would prove to be a problem for the Messi family as they did not have much money. They needed help and sure enough, Barcelona was the one club who would offer to help. They would help pay for the treatment, Messi went to the Barcelona youth academy and blossom into one of the greatest soccer player's ever.

Messi captains both his club and country, Barcelona and Argentina. Many have consider Messi to be the best player of all time. He has won a record six Ballon d'Or awards, a record six European Golden Shoes, and in 2020 was named to the Ballon d'Or Dream Team. He has spent his entire professional career with Barcelona, where he has won a club-record 33 trophies, including ten La Liga titles, six Copa del Rey titles and four UEFA Champions Leagues. Messi holds the records for most goals in La Liga (467), a La Liga and European league season (50), most hat-tricks in La Liga (36) and the UEFA Champions League (8), and most assists in La Liga (191), a La Liga and European league season (21) and the Copa América (12). He has scored over 750 senior career goals for club and country, and has the most goals ever by a player for a single club. 

Throughout his career, Messi has been involved in charitable efforts aimed at vulnerable children, a commitment that stems in part from the medical difficulties he faced in his own childhood. Since 2004, he has contributed his time and finances to the UNICEF.