Hall of Fames
The 2014 World Cup soccer games drew a huge audience in front of the Television. The competition is held once every four years since 1930. The current champion is Germany, which won its fourth title at the 2014 tournament in Brazil. There were many spectacular moments throughout the tournament, one man deserves special mention is Lionel Messi who captained Argentia team and was awarded the Golden Ball as the best player in the 2014 tournament.
On July 9, Argentina eliminated the Netherlands, 4–2 on penalties in the semi-final, after a 0–0 draw following extra time, allowing them to progress to the World Cup Final for the first time since Maradona had led them there in 1990. Argentina won the championship twice, one in 1978, and the other in 1986. However, both time in 1990 and 2014 Argentina lost the title to Germany.
Messi has achieved many great accomplishments at young age and his life is inspirational. Messi is the first and only player to top-score in four consecutive Champions League campaigns, and also holds the record for the most hat-tricks scored in the competition. In March 2012, Messi made Champions League history by becoming the first player to score five goals in one match. He also matched José Altafini”s record of 14 goals in a single Champions League season. In 2013, SportsPro rated him the second-most marketable athlete in the world. In December 2012, Barcelona announced that Messi would sign a five-year contract extension which will keep him at the club until 2018 and raising his base salary to €16 million ($21.2 million) net, which will make him the highest on-field earner in football.
Dream Shattered in a Short Little Boy
Lionel Messi was born on June 24, 1987, in Rosario, Argentina. His parents are Jorge Horácio Messi, a factory steel worker, and Celia María Cuccittini, a part-time cleaner. As a young boy, he tagged along when his two older brothers played soccer with their friends, unintimidated by the bigger boys. At the age of 8, he was recruited to join the youth system of Newell”s Old Boys, a Rosario-based club.He became part of a local youth powerhouse that lost only one match in the next four years and became locally known as “The Machine of ”87″, from the year of their birth Recognizably smaller than most of the kids in his age group, Messi was eventually diagnosed by doctors as suffering from a hormone deficiency that restricted his growth at the age of 11.
Local team River Plate showed interest in Messi”s progress, but were not willing to pay for treatment for his condition, which cost $900 a month. Carles Rexach, the sporting director of FC Barcelona, was made aware of his talent as Messi had relatives in Lleida in western Catalonia, and Messi and his father were able to arrange a trial with the team. Rexach, with no other paper at hand, offered Messi a contract written on a paper napkin. Barcelona offered to pay Messi”s medical bills on the condition that he moved to Spain. Messi and his father duly moved to Barcelona, where Messi enrolled in the club”s youth academy. Messi is listed at 5”7″ by FCB, which is exactly average for an Argentinian male. At the time Messi was diagnosed, he was only 4”2″!
Rise from the Fall
Messi moved quickly through the junior system ranks, and by the age of 16, he had made his first appearance for Barcelona. Messi put himself in the record books on May 1, 2005, as the youngest player to ever score a goal for the franchise. That same year, he led Argentina to the title in the under-20 World Cup, scoring on a pair of penalty kicks to propel the team over Nigeria. His style is simply inexplicable as seen in YouTube. He has scored record goals. The rest is history – Lionel Messi ? Barcelona History ? The Movie.
I Chose to Believe My Dream by Charity
Although he is famously quiet and private off the field, Messi has found ways to help out others in need. In 2007, he formed the Leo Messi Foundation to provide opportunities for disadvantaged youths. Leo Messi Foundation has originated as an initiative of Lionel Messi with the support of all his family and with the idea that all children have the same opportunities for making their dreams come true. He shares his life story and values in constant perseverance against every obstacle, self-improvement through effort , the importance of family and friends, and especially the unconditional belief in dreams.
“One day, after a visit to a hospital, I realized the special dimension of a public figure. I understood that to these sick children the presence of a known player can be very helpful. You are there and they smile and for them is a special joy because they are most eager to keep fighting, because they really believe they will outgrow the disease and to pursue their dreams.. I reached my dream of becoming a footballer and I want you to know that I fought hard to get and I have to fight even harder to keep. That effort and that success I want to use it to help children who need it most, because that is what I chose, because I get excited every day that a child smile when he thinks that there is hope, when I see him happy. So we decided to create the Foundation Leo Messi. And I will keep fighting to bring joy to children with the same force and intensity that I need to remain footballer ” (I Chose to Believe Messi May 2010)
In early 2010, UNICEF named him a goodwill ambassador, with a focus on fighting for children”s rights across the globe.
Futher Reading:
World Cup
FIFA
Wikipedia
Golden Ball
Biography