Messi currently plays for Miami CF
Oviedo, Spain, June 3 (EFE).-
Argentine football legend Lionel Messi, widely regarded as one of the greatest players in the history of the sport, was awarded the 2026 Princess of Asturias Award for Sports on Wednesday in recognition of his extraordinary career and social impact beyond football.
Messi, who currently plays for Inter Miami CF, enjoyed the most successful period of his career with FC Barcelona, where he spent 17 seasons and won four UEFA Champions League titles, 10 Spanish league championships and seven Copa del Rey trophies. He later added two French league titles during his time with Paris Saint-Germain F.C.
The 38-year-old forward remains Barcelona‘s all-time leader in goals, titles and victories. He has won a record eight Ballon d’Or awards, six European Golden Shoes and eight Pichichi trophies as the top scorer in Spain’s top division.
Born in the Argentine city of Rosario on June 24, 1987, Messi began his football development with Newell’s Old Boys before moving to Barcelona at the age of 13 to join the club’s youth academy, where he continued treatment for a growth hormone deficiency.
Messi achieved the crowning moment of his international career by leading Argentina national football team to victory at the 2022 FIFA World Cup. He has also won two Copa América titles and the Finalissima with Argentina and is preparing to compete in what would be his sixth World Cup.
![[FILE] Lionel Messi speaks during the Marca América Award ceremony. EFE/Eva Marie Uzcátegui](/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/Lionel-Messi-Speaking-750x500.jpg)
His individual honors include three The Best FIFA Men’s Player awards, two Laureus World Sports Awards as Sportsman of the Year, and a Guinness World Record for scoring 91 goals in a calendar year in 2012.
Beyond football, Messi has been a UNICEF ambassador since 2010 and supports educational and healthcare initiatives for vulnerable children through the Leo Messi Foundation.
Messi succeeds Serena Williams, the 2025 recipient of the award. Previous winners include Eliud Kipchoge, the Olympic Refuge Foundation, Pau Gasol, Marc Gasol, Carl Lewis and Sebastian Coe, the award’s first winner in 1987.
The Sports Award, one of eight prizes presented annually by the Princess of Asturias Foundation, includes a sculpture designed by Joan Miró, a €50,000 cash prize, a diploma and an insignia. The award ceremony will take place in October at the Teatro Campoamor. EFE
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