Lionel Messi Receives Most Bizarre Tribute Yet After Argentina Retirement

Lionel Messi is no stranger to honors. At Inter Miami’s Nu Stadium, he has a stand named after him. His boyhood club, Newell's Old Boys, has a similar section bearing his name.

While his name has graced crowd stands, shoes, apparel, sports drinks and more, the latest might be the oddest. Now, a newly discovered plant species has been named after him: the Salvia messii.

An academic study revealed a new species in the Andes mountain range of Peru, and it has been immediately classified as endangered. With its light blue and white flowers resembling Argentina’s national team kit and the discovery happening near the time of Messi’s international retirement, scientists were inspired to name the plant after the eight-time Ballon d’Or winner.

Paul Gonzales of the Natural History Museum of the National University of San Marco, alongside Argentine researcher Rolando Uria and biologist Jean Capcha-Ramos of Huarango Nature described the species and conducted the initial studies. The full name, written in Latin under international rules of botanical nomenclature, translates to “Messi’s plant,” with an added “i” to indicate possession. It can grow to 4'11" tall, not much shorter than the diminutive soccer star that stands at 5'7".

This plant species is not the first to be named after a soccer player in the wake of the 2026 World Cup. Spanish researcher Jesus Ortea named a marine mollusk Aldisa vozinhai after Cape Verde’s star goalkeeper, Vozinha, per The Athletic. It directly translates to “Vozinha’s sea slug”. Ortea previously named a marine snail species after legendary Costa Rica and Real Madrid goalkeeper Keylor Navas.

Messi’s Recent Honors

Lionel Messi was given an honorary doctorate before his Argentina retirment. | MB Media/Getty Images

Messi is really making a name for himself in the academic community. In addition to a new species named in his honor, he received an honorary doctorate degree from the University of Buenos Aires ahead of his international farewell match earlier this month. It honored his sporting career, his representation of Argentine identity on the global stage and his social contributions through the Leo Messi Foundation, UNICEF and other avenues.

While off-pitch honors in the twilight of his career are coming fast, Messi still has several goals on the pitch as he chases a third-straight MLS MVP title, a second-straight MLS Golden Boot and Inter Miami’s title defense of the MLS Cup, with the playoffs set to begin on Nov. 18.

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