Lionel Messi Net Worth: Investments, Salary & Endorsements
Know Lionel Messi’s net worth and salary
Lionel Messi is an Argentine-born professional athlete who has a net worth of $650 million. Lionel Messi is often considered the best football player in the world and one of the best in history. He is certainly one of, if not THE, highest paid player in history.
Early life
Lionel Messi was born on June 24, 1987, in Rosario, Argentina. His father, Jorge Horacio Messi, was a steel worker, and his mother, Celia Maria Cuccittini, was a part-time cleaner. He is close to his two older brothers, Rodrigo and Matias, and a sister, Maria Sol, and the family played football constantly together with his cousins Maximiliano and Emanuel Biancucchi, who also became professional football players. Messi joined the Rosario football club when he was just six years old and played for Newell’s Old Boys.
When Lionel was ten years old, he was diagnosed with growth hormone deficiency and his father could no longer afford medical treatment for him. Newell’s agreed to contribute, but later withdrew its pledge. FC Barcelona Sporting Director Carles Rexach offered to pay the medical bills if Messi could move to Spain. With Lionel’s father’s approval, Rexach drew up a contract on a paper napkin and the family moved to Barcelona in February 2001. They moved into an apartment near the Camp Nou, the club’s stadium. Messi felt homesick after his mother and brothers returned to Rosario while he stayed in Barcelona with his father. After a year, Messi was registered with the Royal Spanish Football Federation, where he became part of the “Baby Dream Team”, the largest group of young football players in Barcelona.
Lionel Messi salary and contracts
When he was at his peak at Barcelona, Lionel Messi was easily the highest-paid football player in the world. In 2017, he signed a contract with Barcelona that paid a base salary of US$168 million. His contract numbers were a closely guarded secret for several years, but in January 2021, Spanish newspaper “El Mundo” published the leaked contract details. Under a previous contract, his annual base salary was $44.68 million.
In August 2021, Lionel signed with Paris Saint-Germain. His initial contract is a two-year deal that equates to $75 million per year before taxes, about $40 million after taxes. Messi’s contract also allows him to earn additional bonuses based on milestones and a reduction in shirt sales.
Messi earns an additional $40 million every year from sponsorships. He has a lifetime sponsorship deal with Adidas. Between June 2018 and June 2019, he earned an impressive $130 million. Messi appeared on the covers of the video games “Pro Evolution Soccer 2009” and “Pro Evolution Soccer 2011”. He and Fernando Torres are the faces of the video game “Pro Evolution Soccer 2010” and helped with the trailer and motion capture.
Career
At the age of 17, Lionel made his league debut against RCD Espanyol and became the third youngest person to play for FC Barcelona. At that time, he was also the youngest player to score for Barcelona. During the 2005-2006 season, Messi began to be paid as a starter and also obtained Spanish citizenship. He also made his debut in the Spanish First Division league. Messi received a standing ovation during his first match after scoring alongside superstar Ronaldinho . In his seventeen league appearances he scored six goals. He scored one goal in six in the Champions League. In 2006, Messi became the youngest Argentine to play and score in the FIFA World Cup.
After the World Cup, in the 2006-2007 season, Messi was injured with a metatarsal fracture, which took three months to heal. He returned to the game against Racing Santander as a second-leg substitute. In March of that season, he scored three goals against Real Madrid, making him the first player since Ivan Zamorano to do so in El Clasico. In the 2007-2008 season, Messi led Barcelona to the top four in La Liga. He was nominated, as a striker, for the FIFA ProWorld XI Player Award, and the newspaper Marca named him the best player in the world. Other newspapers followed and stated that Lionel should receive the Ballon d’Or. He finally won his first one in 2009, at age 22, and has won three more in a row each year. He also won an Olympic gold medal at the 2008 Summer Olympics. In 2012, he set La Liga and European records for the most goals scored in a single season. This sealed his fate as Barcelona’s all-time top scorer. In the following two seasons, Messi, now Barcelona captain, finished second in the Ballon d’Or behind career rival Cristiano Ronaldo. In 2014, Messi led Argentina to the World Cup final, for which he also won the Ballon d’Or. Lionel announced his retirement in 2016, but reversed his decision and led Argentina to qualify for the 2018 FIFA World Cup. They also finished third in the 2019 Copa América. In 2019, Messi secured a record sixth Ballon d’Or.
Adidas endorsement
Being as he is one of the most famous and recognized athletes in the world; Messi has been sponsored by Adidas since 2006. He is the brand’s main endorser. He originally signed with Nike at age 14 but switched to Adidas. In 2008, Messi had a long-standing Adidas football boot collection and was given his own football boot sub-brand called Adidas Messi.
Charity
Messi is the founder of the Leo Messi Foundation, which helps find better opportunities for underprivileged children in terms of education and healthcare. He started the charity in 2007 after a visit to a Boston children’s hospital, an experience he says profoundly changed him. His foundation, with help from Herbalife, helps pay for medical treatment, transportation and recovery for children diagnosed with serious medical problems. Messi has also been a UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador since March 2010. He completed a field mission for UNICEF, traveling to Haiti to raise public awareness about the plight of the country’s children following the recent earthquake.
Lionel also conducts individual fundraising activities such as global football matches and raises money for various charities. Messi financially supports many youth football clubs in Argentina, such as Sarmiento, Rosario Central, Newell’s, River Plate and Boca Junior. At his boyhood club Newell’s, Messi financed the construction of a new gym and dormitory within the club’s stadium in 2012. His former coach is employed by the Messi Foundation and works as a talent scout for young players.
In March 2020, Messi made a $1 million donation to help combat the spread of the coronavirus. Additionally, Lionel and his Barcelona Football Club teammates took a 70% pay cut during the COVID-19 emergency. They did this so that no worker in Barcelona would have their wages reduced during the global emergency.
