Meet Lionel Messi's 3 Siblings! All About His Soccer Enthusiast Brothers Rodrigo and Matías and Fashion Designer Sister María Sol
Legendary soccer player Lionel Messi’s siblings help him manage his career
Lionel Messi grew up in a close-knit family alongside three siblings: brothers Rodrigo and Matías and sister María Sol.
Before Messi left for Spain as a teenager and began his journey to becoming one of the best soccer players in history, he lived with his siblings and parents, dad Jorge and mom Celia, in Rosario, Argentina.
Though three of the siblings have gone on to create families with children of their own, they have remained close. Both Rodrigo and Matías have helped Lionel with the practical side of his career, while María Sol has a leadership role at The Messi Store.
Related: All About Lionel Messi's Parents, Jorge Messi and Celia Cuccittini
In 2018, Messi told Marca, “I love football and I live for it, but family is above all,” and added that he and his family always try to return to Argentina for special occasions like Christmas.
From their children to their famous cousins, here’s everything to know about Lionel Messi’s siblings.
Messi and his siblings grew up in Rosario, Argentina
Messi and his siblings all grew up in Rosario, a city 186 miles northwest of Buenos Aires, with their father Jorge and mother Celia.
They lived in a two-story home on the Calle Lavalleja, a residential area of the city near the Parana River, per The New York Times.
The family all enjoyed soccer, and Messi played it with his brothers as a child. When he joined FC Barcelona, Messi's family — including all three siblings — joined him for a while before Celia, Rodrigo, Matías and María Sol returned to Argentina, leaving Jorge to stay with Messi in Spain.
Rodrigo and Matías have children of their own
Like Messi, who is a father of three children, Thiago, Mateo and Ciro, Rodrigo and Matías are also parents.
Related: Lionel Messi's 3 Kids: All About Mateo, Thiago and Ciro
In July 2022, Matías shared a photo of himself with his son Tomás to celebrate his 20th birthday. “A day like today 20 years ago, I felt complete happiness," he wrote on Instagram. "The most important thing is that I'm always going to be there with you good or bad. I am very proud of you!! I love you.” The dad also occasionally posts photos with his daughter.
In 2020, Rodrigo posted a photo of himself and his wife with their three children, to celebrate the new year.
Rodrigo and Matías have helped Messi with his career
Along with their parents, Rodrigo and Matías have helped manage Messi's career.
Rodrigo has worked with Jorge, who’s been the soccer player's agent since he was 14, by looking after Messi's schedule and publicity. Meanwhile, Celia and Matías have helped manage the Leo Messi Foundation and handled some of his personal affairs.
Rodrigo has also worked with Kin Partners, a sports management company.
Messi and his siblings share a close bond
Messi shares a close bond with Rodrigo, Matías and María Sol, and the soccer player comes home to Argentina to see his family when he can.
Messi's parents and siblings all joined him at his wedding to Antonella Roccuzzo in 2017 and he told Marca in 2018 that he and his wife like to spend Christmas with their family in Argentina when they can.
In December 2023, Messi and Roccuzzo went out in Miami with María Sol and his Inter Miami teammate Sergio Busquets. Matías, on the other hand, shows his love for his brother with Messi's face tattooed on his right arm, per Marca.
Rodrigo, Matías and María Sol share their lives on social media
Messi and his three siblings all use social media to share about their everyday lives and their business ventures.
While María Sol has shared about her career in fashion, Rodrigo and Matías often post family photos and share support for their brother.
Messi also posts family photos on Instagram. In January 2022, when he was recovering from COVID-19, he shared a photo of himself with his parents and siblings.
María Sol helps to lead The Messi Store
María Sol has worked as brand manager for Messi's fashion brand, The Messi Store, with Virginia Hilfiger, the sister of fashion designer Tommy Hilfiger.
María Sol told the New York Style Guide in 2022 that she is proud to work on her brother's brand.
“What I try and do at The Messi Store is to channel the brand’s vision and be the link between the ideas, the work we carry out and the way in which Leo himself, as the brand ambassador, thinks and dresses," she said. "I put in a lot of effort to be able to work on this project, which is so special for my family and I.”
María Sol has also collaborated with Bikinis Rio to create a swimsuit collection in January 2022. The brand launched the Brilla y Ama collaboration with photos of the bikinis in an Instagram post.
Messi and his siblings have famous cousins
Messi isn’t the only professional soccer player in the family — cousins Maxi and Emanuel Biancucchi also play soccer. The sons of Celia's sister grew up playing soccer with Lionel, Rodrigo and Matías.
Maxi played for teams in Argentina, Brazil, Mexico and Paraguay but has since retired, while Emanuel plays for Resende FC in Brazil.
Read the original article on People