Messi and Lamine Yamal: bathtub photo meets World Cup final
Neither Lionel Messi nor Lamine Yamal has lifted Sunday's World Cup trophy yet—but the viral bathtub reunion already stole the show. Nineteen years after a UNICEF shoot captured Messi bathing baby Yamal, messi and lamine yamal face off as Argentina and Spain collide in the final at MetLife Stadium.
Key Takeaways
- Argentina and Spain meet in the World Cup final with Messi, 39, opposite Yamal, 19.
- Viral 2007 UNICEF photos show a 20-year-old Messi bathing five-month-old Yamal.
- Messi called the image "crazy" and wished Yamal luck—while vowing Argentina will try to stop him.
- Spain has not conceded a goal all tournament; Argentina is the defending champion.
- If Spain wins, Yamal would become the third-youngest starter to win a World Cup final.
The pictures are everywhere again: FC Barcelona's Lionel Messi, then just 20, cradling an infant who grew into Spanish star Lamine Yamal during a 2007 UNICEF charity photo shoot. Two days before the final at New York New Jersey Stadium, the full-circle saga jumped from meme to main event.
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What did Messi say about the baby bathtub photos?
At Fanatics Fest in New York City, Tom Brady asked Messi—onstage before a phone-wielding crowd—what the photos meant. "That picture was crazy," Messi said through an interpreter. "I just wish him the best of luck."
Spain midfielder Mikel Merino admitted he first thought the images were AI. They are real. In December 2007, the Yamal family won a raffle tied to a Barcelona foundation and Diario Sport calendar shoot with UNICEF. Freelance photographer Joan Monfort later told the Associated Press the shoot happened in Camp Nou's visiting locker room, with a plastic tub of soapy water and an unsure young Messi.
"He is one of the best players in the world right now," Messi said ahead of the final, per Yahoo Sports. "Him as a baby, and now we are facing each other. What a crazy picture."
Why does the Messi vs Yamal story matter for this final?
It is the first-ever World Cup final between the reigning South American and European champions: Argentina, the defending title holders, and Spain, Euro winners two summers ago. Tickets reflected the hype—the cheapest seat topped $9,200 as of Saturday afternoon, Time Magazine reported.
Spain coach Luis de la Fuente called both sides "two superteams." Spain has not conceded a single goal all tournament. Yamal has one World Cup goal, against Saudi Arabia in the group stage. Striker Mikel Oyarzabal leads Spain with five.
Yamal's father posted the bathtub images two years ago with the caption "the beginning of two legends." Monfort told the AP the U.S. final gave the story "the extra push," calling the Messi-Yamal climax "better than any film script."
Who actually wins the Messi and Lamine Yamal battle?
On the pitch, that answer arrives Sunday (3 p.m. ET on Fox). Off it, the audience already won: a 39-year-old icon versus a 19-year-old phenom, linked by a bathtub and a raffle ticket from 2007.
Rodri, Spain's Ballon d'Or-winning midfielder, stressed that "Argentina is much more than Messi." FOX Sports analyst Stu Holden framed the styles as Spanish control versus Argentine spirit. Messi said he has followed Yamal at Barcelona and wishes him luck—because what is good for Yamal is good for the club—while Argentina will try to prevent a Spanish fairytale.
New pictures are coming. This time, no towel required.