Football is a great sport that has influenced nations. Football has an interesting history dating back to ancient Rome and Greece. Millions of people gather to watch skilled athletes compete. It is an international sport, so popular that physical education programs have integrated football into their curriculum. Many local communities also have youth football organizations. Soccer may not be the most popular sport in the United States, but it is everywhere. This makes it the most loved game in the world. With the United States diversifying every day, soccer players bring their influences with them. Everyone can play, but you have to be a hard worker to overcome the odds of physical deficiency. One of the most skilled players in the world today is Lionel Messi. He is so deep with the ball and is an inspiration to everyone who watches him. Lionel Messi would be a big supporter of Campbell Chunky Soup. He won the FIFA World Player of the Year award four times (already a record). He has won practically everything there is to win in football. Pelé and Maradona are considered by many to be the best players ever. It is no exaggeration to say that Messi can claim a position alongside these players in the pantheon of footballing greats (Coggin). As a matter of fact, he had been described as Diego Maradona's successor due to his prolific goalscoring record and ability to dribble past challengers. ball, but he is a technical genius, low center of gravity and speed, capable of breaking down any defense off the dribble and lifting something out of nothing. He has difficulty when used as a striker and prefers to play wide and cut with his left foot.(ESPN)HISTORY/BACKGROUNDLionel Andrés "Leo" Messi was......center of card......1 beating the ball the previous record of 85 points by German Gerd Muller and Pele's achievement of 75 points in 1958. Messi became the commercial face with support from Pepsi, Adidas, Turkish Airways and EA Sports, among other companies. Having signed an extension with Barcelona that guarantees him a base salary of around $21 million a year until 2018, he is one of the highest paid athletes in the world. Works Cited Schaerlaeckens, L. (2010, July 10). The best 50 players of the World Cup. Retrieved from http://espnfc.com/world-cup/story/_/page/worldcup101-03012010/ce/us/top-50-players-2010-world-cup?cc=5901&ver=us (Schaerlaeckens, 2010) Wikipedia. (2013, November 17). Lionel Messi. Retrieved from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lionel_Messi (wikipedia, 2013)Coggin, S. (n.d.). Lionel Messi. Retrieved from http://worldsoccer.about.com/od/players/a/messiprofile.htm (Coggin)