Lionel Messi: Top 5 Instagram Posts Since He Became World Cup Winner

• On December 2022, Lionel Messi captained Argentina to World Cup victory over France
• He enjoyed an extended break before returning to club football with Paris Saint-Germain
• Messi has made a series of posts on Instagram since then, some of which set new records

Lionel Messi fulfilled his lifelong ambition on December 18, 2022, at the Lusail Stadium in Doha, Qatar.

He did this by lifting the FIFA World Cup, after Argentina beating title holders France 4-2 on penalties. Messi scored twice in the final and converted his spot kick in the shootout.

He would have to thank goalkeeper, Emiliano Martinez for saving two spot kicks and Gonzalo Montiel, who scored the decisive kick to secure La Albiceleste's place in history.

The first post made by the Argentina captain in celebration of becoming a world champion broke the Instagram record for the most liked picture, which stood at 56-million then, according to Sports Illustrated.

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Messi's top post-World Cup pics

Beginning with the record-breaking picture, the former Barcelona star has made a series of posts on the photo-sharing app since victory in Qatar.

However, these five currently rank the most popular:

1. World Cup winners' message

The 35-year-old posted his first message a few minutes after the win, where he revealed it was his lifelong dream and thanked everyone who supported his goal. The picture currently has more than 74-million likes and broke Instagram's record for the most liked picture, formerly held by world record egg at 56m likes.

2. Messi rests with World Cup

The PSG striker posted three pictures on the morning of December 20, 2022, in which he lay in bed with the trophy in various poses.

3. Flying home to Argentina

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Triumphant La Albiceleste squad members flew home the following morning to their country's capital of Buenos Aires. As the captain, he held onto the trophy as they boarded the plane.

4. Trophy parade in Buenos Aires

The players next celebrated their victory with thousands of fans, who trooped out onto the streets of Buenos Aires.

5. Family picture on New Year's

On the final day of last year, the seven-time Ballon d'Or winner posted a picture of his family: his wife, Antonella Roccuzzo and their three sons, Thiago, Mateo and Ciro.

Saudi businessman buys $2.6m ticket

Sports Brief earlier reported that a Saudi businessman bought a gold ticket to watch Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo play in the Riyadh Season Cup in Saudi Arabia.

The two iconic footballers will take to the pitch when the Riyadh XI, a combination of Al-Nassr and Al-Hilal players, takes on PSG in the Saudi Arabian capital on Thursday.

This would be Ronaldo's first game in the Middle Eastern country, since he signed a lucrative £175m per year contract with Saudi Pro League side, Al-Nassr.