Argentina's Lionel Messi and Spain's Lamine Yamal are set to face each other in the FIFA World Cup final, marking their first on-field meeting. Yamal, a 19-year-old Barcelona prodigy, and Messi, the 39-year-old legend, have a prior, albeit forgotten by Yamal, encounter from when Yamal was an infant.

Photographs resurfaced during Spain's Euro 2024 campaign show a young Messi, then 20, holding a baby Yamal. This moment was captured for a charity calendar organized by Diario Sport and UNICEF in 2007. Yamal's family won a raffle to have their picture taken with a Barcelona player at Camp Nou.

Freelance photographer Joan Monfort documented the event, describing Messi as shy and initially unsure how to hold the baby. Despite the awkwardness, the encounter has gained new significance as the two players prepare to compete on the world's biggest stage. Yamal, who debuted for Barcelona at 15 and has already won multiple titles and a Euro championship, is seen by some as a successor to Messi's legacy.