Study Reveals Lionel Messi’s Ancestral Link To Brazil’s Sao Paulo
Brazil [Brazil]: A new study has revealed an ancestral link between Argentina’s 2022 FIFA World Cup-winning football icon Lionel Messi and Brazilian Sao Paulo, tracing part of his family’s journey before settling in Argentina.
A study by Italian researcher Fiorenzo Santini concluded that one of Messi’s ancestors was born in Sao Paulo, Brazil, before the family later moved to Argentina, Brazilian outlet Globo reported, citing Goal.com. The research also drew attention to the changes in the family’s surname during their migration journey.
Santini, who is an expert in tracing genealogy and has studied the superstar footballer’s family tree for several years, was curious about the origin of the surname Messi in his early days at Barcelona.
According to the research, Messi’s paternal great-grandfather, Angelo Messi, left the Italian city of Recanati with his wife in 1893 and moved to Rosario, Argentina.
On his mother’s side, the story goes back to his great-grandfather, Ranieri Cocchietini. He was born in the San Severino Marche region of Italy and emigrated to Brazil with his wife Rosa Ricchezza on the ship “Washington”, which arrived at the port of Santos in September 1899.
According to historical documents, the family’s journey to Brazil saw a change in first and last names, as difficulties were encountered in spelling foreign names at the time, and Ranieri became “Ramiero Concchietini”, a common change among immigrants at the time.
The great-grandfather settled in the city of Sao Paulo and worked on farms in the Rincao region before moving to the city of Ribeirao Preto in 1904, where the family’s two children, including Ardirigo, were born.
About a year after Ardirigo’s birth, the family left Brazil for Argentina, settling near the city of Rosario, where they began a new phase of life. Antonio Cocchietini,
Later, Messi’s grandfather was born, followed by his mother, Celia Maria Cocchietini. Messi was born on June 24, 1987.
Santini announced that his research continued between 2019 and 2022 after he realized that there was no record of the surname “Cocchietini” in Italy. Through Messi’s mother’s documents and relatives, the researcher was able to trace the name and surname change during the family’s stay in Brazil.
He added that these findings helped the iconic football player gain the title of ‘honorary citizen’ of the Italian city of San Severino Marche in 2022 due to his family roots.
According to the research, there is no record of Messi’s relatives staying in Ribeirao Preto, Brazil, after the family moved to Argentina in 1905. The only link connecting Messi to the city is the street called “Martinico Prado”, named after the farm owner who took in Messi’s ancestors when they were in Sao Paulo before moving to Argentina.
