Lionel Messi broke his own Guinness World Record with six species named in his honour: all insects, animals, fossils, fungi and plants

Lionel Messi’s latest botanical tribute has entered the Guinness Book of World Records for six species, including animals, fossils and fungi. A sage plant discovered in the Peruvian Andes has become the sixth species named after Lionel Messi, extending the previous record of a lizard, spider, fossil brachiopod, condor and mushroom. Newly described Salvia messii it bears Argentina’s familiar blue and white colors in its flowers, but the tribute comes with a disturbing detail: researchers have classified the plant as endangered.

A new race bears Messi’s name in the Andes

Salvia messii is a species of sage endemic to the Andes of central and southern Peru, where it grows on rocky, dry slopes between 2000 and 2400 meters above sea level. It belongs to the mint family, Lamiaceae, which includes plants associated with antioxidant, anti-inflammatory and antiseptic properties.The plant can grow up to around 1.5 meters tall with pale blue and white flowers that resemble Argentina’s national colors. These colors make the choice of namesake particularly fitting for a footballer who has represented his country during a career spanning more than two decades.The name follows botanical naming conventions, which often adapt the person’s surname to Latin. The ending “i” indicates ownership, so Salvia messii can be understood as “Messi’s Sage”.

Lionel Messi inspires the name of an endangered Peruvian plant whose blue-white flowers resemble the national colors of Argentina/ Image: AP, X

The species was described by scientists led by Paul Gonzales of the Natural History Museum at the National University of San Marcos, along with Argentinian researcher Rolando Uria and biologist Jean Capcha-Ramos of Huarango Nature. Their study appeared in the October issue of the botanical journal Phytotaxa.The plant’s limited range and endangered classification give the discovery significance beyond its unusual celebrity namesake. Its name may draw attention to the species, but its survival depends on protecting the mountain habitat where it grows.

A sixth kind was added to Messi’s record

In May 2024 Guinness World Records were recognized Messi as the footballer with the most species named after him, at that time he recorded five. Salvia messii now bringing the total to six.Scientific nameSpeciesLocation or originYearLiolaemus messiiIguana Lizard Rosario de Lerma, Argentina2021Acanthogonatus messiiBuried SpiderArgentine Patagonia2023Reject MessiFossil Brachiopod Miocene Era Argentina2023Vulture messiiFossil condor from the Pliocene Era Argentina 2023Cercopemyces messiiMushroomAndean cloud forest, Salta Province, Argentina2024Salvia messiiSage plantPeruvian Andes2026Names include living animals, prehistoric fossils, fungi and now a flowering plant. The fossil condor and brachiopods also show that the honor is not limited to species living today.Messi’s record is unusual, although he is not the only footballer whose name has entered scientific classification. Diego Maradona has been associated with four named organisms but one, the fairy wasp Anaphes maradonaeit was later found to be the same species as the previously named wasp and is therefore no longer considered valid.

What the names say about Messi’s legacy

Rather than through a single award or official campaign, Messi’s name has entered science thanks to a number of researchers who have chosen to recognize his influence. The latest example links its sporting identity directly to the colors of Argentina, even though the plant itself grows across the border in Peru.The honor also comes after a remarkable international career. Messi made his senior Argentina debut against Hungary on 17 August 2005, he briefly retired from international football in 2016 before returning to lead the team in its great success.

Argentina’s Lionel Messi celebrates after scoring his team’s third goal from the penalty spot during his final game for the national team, a friendly soccer match against Benin, in Buenos Aires, Argentina, Tuesday, Oct. 6, 2026. AP/PTI(AP10_08_2026_00008

He captained Argentina to the 2021 and 2024 Copa América titles and triumph at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar. Messi played 208 games for Argentina and scored 126 goals, winning the Ballon d’Or eight times. In his last international game earlier this month, he scored in Argentina’s 3-0 win over Benin. Now 39, he continues his club career at Inter Miami and has also been nominated among the 30 contenders for the 2026 Ballon d’Or.

Messi is not the first footballer to be awarded by science

The practice of naming newly described organisms after footballers goes back further than Messi’s record. In December 2009, scientists named 12 newly described species of microcaddisfly after members of the 1958 World Cup-winning Brazilian team, including Pelé, who was named Neotrichia pelei.Maradona’s scientific namesakes include the fossil fluke, the parasitic fluke, and the sea snail, along with the wasp, which was later found not to be a separate species.For Messi, the new sage adds another entry to the record already recognized by Guinness, while drawing attention to a plant whose future is less secure than the footballer’s place in the history of the sport. The sixth namesake may be a small botanical discovery, but it bears both a tribute and a reminder of the biodiversity researchers are still identifying.