Three very important supporters were there to support Lionel Messi when Argentina defeated France in the 2022 FIFA World Cup: his sons Mateo, Thiago, and Ciro.

After the game, the soccer star and two of his sons shared a touching moment. The boys were wearing jerseys with their father’s name and number (10) on the back when they gave him a hug. The soccer star had scored two goals during the ᴛʜʀɪʟʟɪɴɢ game. Their younger brother and mother, Antonella Roccuzzo, soon joined them. She later shared several adorable pictures from the family gathering.

Roccuzzo captioned a gallery of images featuring herself, Messi, and their three sons, saying, “I don’t even know where to start.” “How incredibly proud we are of you, @leomessi. We appreciate you teaching us to never give up and to persevere until the job is finished. As a World Champion, we are aware of the ᴘᴀɪɴ and suffering you endured in order to win this.”

Thiago, Messi and Roccuzzo’s first child, was born in 2012. The two were childhood friends who later reconnected in 2005. Mateo, their second son, was born in 2015, and Ciro, their third son, was born in 2018.

The athlete later admitted to FC Barcelona that becoming a father had completely altered his ᴏᴜᴛʟᴏᴏᴋ. He said in 2017 that “you learn and you grow.” “On and off the field, you gain experience in every facet of life. But as a person, having three kids changed my ᴏᴜᴛʟᴏᴏᴋ on life, my way of thinking, and it also enabled me to advance.”

Even though this was Messi’s second World Cup appearance, he told reporters that his older boys’ maturity made the experience even more special.

He said after beating Australia in the round of 16: “From the very beginning, from kick-off to the final whistle, I’m thinking of my children.” “They are advancing in age. They enjoy it more and have a better understanding of what’s happening.”

It’s evident that Messi’s sons are already following in their talented father’s footsteps, despite the ꜰᴀᴄᴛ that Messi has stated he wants them to “do what makes them happy,” whether or not that involves soccer. Thiago, Mateo, and Ciro have not only spent a large portion of their lives watching Messi play soccer while growing up on the field, but all three of the boys are also rising soccer stars in their own right.

Both Thiago and Mateo enrolled in the PSG soccer academy after Messi signed with Ligue 1 club Paris Saint-Germain in 2021 and he and Roccuzzo moved their family to France. However, Messi occasionally posts videos of him and his sons competing in friendly games, so the boys’ best lessons are probably learned at home.

Here is all the information on Lionel Messi and Antonella Roccuzzo’s three sons.

Thiago Messi Roccuzzo, 10

On November 2, 2012, Messi and Roccuzzo welcomed their son Thiago into the world for the first time. Messi got his son’s name and handprints tattooed on his calf shortly after birth to display his love for him in a lifelong way.

The impact Thiago had on Messi’s life was well-documented. In 2013, Messi told El Periódico, “My son has changed my life more than the Ballon d’Or [awards] have.”

The soccer star also mentioned how fatherhood changed his priorities: “When I consider life, consider every second, and consider every circumstance… Everything has changed since then.”

Despite Messi’s well-known career, he claimed in an essay for Sports Illustrated in 2016 that his life off the field is just like any other parent’s.

Taking Thiago to school, attending training, relaxing at home while drinking maté, and spending time with Anto and the kids at the park or another location are all part of a typical day, according to him. It’s a typical, peaceful life that we have always desired.

Since Messi played for Barcelona from 2004 to 2021, Thiago, now 10 years old, has been playing soccer since he was a young child. A video of Thiago scoring during his first game with the team in February 2020 went viral, and fans immediately dubbed him a young protégé. He currently represents the Paris Saint-Germain academy, and as Messi noted in an interview from October 2022, Thiago and his brothers quickly adjusted to their new life in Paris.

“The boys are the ones who adapted the best. It was what worried us the most and it was the easiest of all,” he said in Spanish.

Thiago shared a touching message of support for his father before Messi won the World Cup by writing down the lyrics to “Muchachos Ahora Nos Volvimos an Ilusionar,” as seen on his mother’s Instagram story. According to ESPN, Messi has a particular fondness for the song, which has emerged as the unofficial national anthem of Argentina during the World Cup.

Mateo Messi Roccuzzo, 7

Mateo, Messi and Roccuzzo’s second child, was born on September 11, 2015.

In a 2019 interview, Messi described his middle son as “very special, he’s always doing new things, things that grab your attention.”

And while the soccer star calls Thiago the “calm” brother, Mateo, according to Messi, is competitive like him. Messi told Argentian journalist Sebastián Vignolo that Mateo is similar to him in that he dislikes losing anything.

Even though Mateo likes to win, Messi doesn’t always give his sons an easy victory when they play soccer together. In a hilarious video Roccuzzo shared on Instagram in April 2022, she had to remind him to “let the kids win.”

Mateo’s desire to succeed also extends to his father’s soccer career. Reporters were told by the athlete that Mateo sobbed as he left the stadium following Messi and his team’s sʜᴏᴄᴋɪɴɢ defeat to Saudi Arabia in November. The same as all Argentines, “my family suffers, but we are happy and we get comfortable again,” he said. “Now our progress depends on us.”

The jokester of the family, according to Roccuzzo’s sweet Instagram post in honor of Mateo’s seventh birthday in September. She included a few pictures of Mateo, including one of him posing in front of a soccer net, and wrote in Spanish, “Crazy beautiful, with your batteries and energy recharged, always making us ᴅɪᴇ of laughter.”

Ciro Messi Roccuzzo,  5

On March 10, 2018, Ciro, Messi and Roccuzzo’s third child, was born.

Both his father and mother have ink on their ʙᴏᴅɪᴇs that is specifically inked for their youngest child; Messi has “Ciro” inked on his calf along with his brother’s names, and Roccuzzo has “Ciro” inked on her arm.

Ciro is still developing his personality, according to Messi. He is, however, already exhibiting traits from his older brother. Messi claimed in October 2022 that “he copies Mateo a lot, and they often play against me.”

Messi told Sports Illustrated that the births of his three sons were “life changing” when Ciro was only eight months old. In an essay for the publication, he stated, “I’m ecstatic about the family we have been able to create.

He wrote, “Of course, outside of my family nothing would make me happier than to win my first World Cup with Argentina in 2018,” but there was one significant objective he was still working toward at the time.

He would go on to celebrate his first World Cup victory just four years later, with all three of his sons by his side.

Roccuzzo shared a heartfelt Instagram post in honor of the boy’s fifth birthday on March 10, 2023. She uploaded a recent picture of Ciro sporting the number 10 soccer jersey as well as an old picture of him. She captioned the picture, “Para siempre nuestro Bebé,” which translates to “Forever our baby.”