“Some fans say it’s a conspiracy” - the iconic Lionel Messi and Lamine Yamal photo gets the United States talking

Spain hopes the World Cup final will mark the moment the greatest player in soccer history, Lionel Messi, passes the torch to his long-awaited heir, Lamine Yamal. If that happens, Spain would win its second World Cup in 16 years, with Luis de la Fuente’s side matching the achievement of Vicente del Bosque’s legendary team.

In the days leading up to the final, the photograph taken by our colleague Joan Monfort has been everywhere. It shows Messi long before he became the global superstar he is today – although his talent was already obvious – while Lamine Yamal was still a baby. The image has become a major talking point in the United States.

New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani recently admitted during a public appearance that he initially thought the photograph, which was taken as part of a UNICEF campaign, had been created with artificial intelligence.

“I thought I was able to tell AI apart from a real image. It’s pretty incredible that they’re now going to face each other in the final in New York. I’m excited.”

Even further was America’s best-known late-night host, Jimmy Fallon.

“This photo is going viral. It’s a real photo of Messi and a baby, Yamal. Some fans are saying it’s one big conspiracy and FIFA has scripted every game for the last 20 years. That’s obviously ridiculous,” he joked.

By pure coincidence, the photograph contains another hidden detail that few people have noticed. Messi is now 39 years old, but he was 19 years younger when the picture was taken. That number – 19 – is the one Lamine Yamal now wears on his back. It also happened to be Messi’s shirt number at the time the photo was taken.

“This is all pretty crazy because the final is also being played on the 19th,” Fallon added.

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