Is the Lionel Messi and Lamine Yamal photo real? Story behind iconic Unicef image

TWO of the best players in football right now Lionel Messi and Lamine Yamal are set to go head to head in the World Cup final this weekend (July 19). However, it won’t mark the first time the two ballers have crossed paths, as circulating the internet are photos of them meeting for the very first time, with Messi bathing and cradling his heir to the Barcelona throne. But was the interaction real? Lionel Messi and Lamine Yamal first met in 2007 The pair are now all set to meet eachother in the 2026 World Cup final Credit: AP Is the Lionel Messi and Lamine Yamal photo real? In short, yes! The photos displaying Messi (39) holding Yamal (19) as an infant are 100% legit. They were taken back in 2007, when the eight-time Ballon d’Or winner was just 20-years-old and Yamal had been born for merely five months. Sign up for the Football newsletter Thank you! The interaction came about via a charity raffle set up by Spanish sports newspaper Diario Sport, in an attempt to raise money for Unicef – who had become the club sponsor of Barcelona a year prior. Up for grabs was a chance for families in Catalonia to feature in a promotional calendar shoot with players in the Barca squad at the time. Read More on the World Cup The photos portraying Messi with Yamal as an infant are real Credit: AP 19 years on and Yamal is trying to help Spain win their first World Cup since 2010 Credit: Getty Amazingly, Yamal’s family were among the winners of the lucky draw and Yamal was paired with then wonderkid Messi. The photoshoot took place in the away dressing room at the Camp Nou, with the photos later being published in the 2008 calendar. Although, they went completely under the radar until Euro 2024 when Yamal’s father, Mounir Nasraoui, took to Instagram to post the picture with the caption: “The beginning of two legends”. What have Unicef said about the photo? Unicef has helped confirm that the photos are authentic and that the identity of the baby is in fact Lamine Yamal. Most read in Sport Messi will be looking to stop Yamal and Spain in order to win back to back World Cup titles Credit: Getty Joan Monfort, who took the photos, believes the encounter was ‘a true miracle of destiny’ They took to their official X (formerly Twitter) page and said: “Yes, those photos you’ve seen are real. “More than 18 years ago, a baby named Lamine Yamal and his mom Sheila met Lionel Messi at a UNICEF fundraising photoshoot.” UNICEF Catalonia’s Laia Ruich also put out a statement on the charity organisation’s website, as she said: “The photographer, Joan Monfort, has said that Lamine Yamal stole Messi’s heart because he was always smiling.” Monfort also shared his thoughts on the coincidental encounter to BBC Sport as he said: “It is a true miracle of destiny. “It is serendipity – when you find something extra special, so much bigger than you ever thought. “If you wrote this in a film it would not seem possible.” Comment now