‘From Baby Bath to World Cup Final’: Here is the True Story Behind Viral Photo of Messi Bathing Baby Lamine Yamal

• The iconic photo of Lionel Messi bathing baby Lamine Yamal is not AI-generated.

Here’s the remarkable true story behind the 2007 UNICEF charity photoshoot that unknowingly captured two future football icons nearly two decades before their World Cup final showdown.

As Lionel Messi prepares to lead Argentina against Spain in the 2026 FIFA World Cup final, one image has once again taken over social media—a photograph showing the Argentine legend bathing a baby who would later become Spain’s teenage sensation, Lamine Yamal.

The picture has sparked widespread debate online, with many users claiming it was created using artificial intelligence or digitally manipulated. However, multiple credible sources, including FIFA and UNICEF, have confirmed that the photograph is completely authentic.

The image was taken nearly 19 years ago during a 2007 charity photoshoot organised by the FC Barcelona Foundation and Catalan newspaper SPORT to raise funds for UNICEF.

At the time, Messi was just 19 years old and beginning his rise to global superstardom, while Yamal was only three months old.

How the photo happened

According to FIFA, the annual charity calendar featured Barcelona first-team players posing with children to raise money for UNICEF projects.

Lamine Yamal’s family, who participated in a UNICEF community programme in Rocafonda, Mataró, won a raffle that allowed their newborn son to appear in the calendar alongside a Barcelona player.

The player could have been Ronaldinho, Xavi Hernández, Andrés Iniesta, Carles Puyol, Thierry Henry, Eric Abidal, Víctor Valdés or another member of the squad.

Instead, fate paired them with Lionel Messi.

On October 31, 2007, Yamal’s mother, Sheila, carried her three-month-old son into Barcelona’s dressing room at Camp Nou, where photographer Joan Monfort captured the now-famous images during a 30-minute session.

Messi had never held a baby

Those involved in the shoot recalled that the teenage Messi looked nervous throughout the session.

Oriol Canals, who worked in SPORT‘s marketing department at the time, said Messi appeared uncomfortable because he had little experience holding babies.

“Messi was as stiff as a broom. I suppose that was because he’d never held a baby in his life.”

Photographer Joan Monfort shared a similar memory, describing the young Argentine as extremely shy.

“Messi was 19 and even shyer and more introverted back then.”

To make baby Yamal smile, Monfort even used a small plastic duck borrowed from his daughter’s toy collection, while the bathtub and towel used during the shoot came from his own home.

The photo disappeared for years

For nearly two decades, the photograph attracted little attention.

That changed in 2024 when Yamal’s father, Mounir, shared it on social media shortly before the teenager helped Spain win the UEFA European Championship.

The image instantly went viral worldwide, with many people refusing to believe it was genuine and suggesting it had been created with AI.

As speculation spread, FIFA revisited the story, explaining how the photograph came to exist, while UNICEF also confirmed its authenticity.

UNICEF confirms the image is real

Ahead of Sunday’s World Cup final, UNICEF again addressed the growing online debate.

The organisation stated:

“Yes, those photos you’ve seen are real.”

UNICEF explained that the images were captured during one of its fundraising campaigns with the FC Barcelona Foundation more than 18 years ago.

The organisation also highlighted another remarkable connection between the two football stars.

Messi has served as a UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador since 2010, while Yamal recently became the organisation’s newest Goodwill Ambassador.

UNICEF noted that although they will be rivals in the World Cup final, both remain united in supporting children’s rights around the world.

A story nobody could have imagined

Photographer Joan Monfort admitted that no one involved in the photoshoot could have predicted how history would unfold.

He described the image as “a miracle,” saying it felt like history had been written long before anyone realised it.

Canals also compared the moment to an NBA legend unknowingly posing with the next generation’s superstar.

He said it was “like Michael Jordan bathing LeBron James.”

Now, with Messi, 39, and Yamal, 19, set to face each other in the biggest match in world football, the story has become one of the most extraordinary coincidences in sporting history.

What began as a simple UNICEF charity photoshoot has evolved into one of football’s most iconic images—capturing two generations of greatness in a single frame, years before either could have imagined sharing the world’s biggest stage.