Lionel Messi finally got the chance to say “Hello” to his namesake when the football legend met pop icon Lionel Richie.

Richie said Messi was named after him. Celia Cuccittini – Messi’s mother – is a huge fan of the famous singer with the hit Dancing on the Ceiling. Therefore, she decided to name her son Lionel to honor her idol.

Surprisingly, Messi and Richie had never met before, until they officially came face to face last Friday night.

Richie later posted a series of photos on social media, capturing the moment he shook hands with Messi at an event. Both were radiant as they chatted intimately.

Richie shared emotionally: “When Lionel met Lionel! His mother named him after me… and now we met. It was so great to see him after all these years.”

However, some fans were skeptical about whether Messi was actually named after Richie. One commented: “Is this true?” Another asked: “Where did this Messi story come from?”

Richie has previously confirmed that Messi is indeed named after him. In 2014, Richie said: “(This meeting) will happen, because I’m really honoured. They named him after me, which is awesome.”

Two years later, when Messi and Argentina lost the Copa America final to Chile, Richie offered a sympathetic response: “Yeah, Lionel, just be like Sunday morning. Don’t let things get you down. If I tell you how many times I lost at the Grammys, it just makes me try harder. So I’m not worried about my namesake – he’ll be fine. He’s a clear winner. He might be sad now, but he’s Lionel, he’ll never lose.”