Messi wore jersey number 10 for most of his Barcelona career.
He inherited the number at the beginning of the 2008–09 season after Ronaldinho left Barcelona. Before that, Messi wore number 30 when he first entered the senior squad and later number 19. The change to 10 marked his transition from emerging star to the central figure in Barcelona’s attack.
Messi immediately made the shirt iconic. In his first season wearing it, Barcelona won La Liga, the Copa del Rey and the UEFA Champions League, completing the first treble in Spanish football history. He went on to wear number 10 throughout the Guardiola era and for the rest of his Barcelona career, until his departure in 2021.
The number is strongly associated with playmakers and attacking leaders, which made it a natural fit for Messi’s role. At Barcelona, he became the club’s all-time leading scorer, winning numerous domestic trophies and four Champions League titles. His earlier numbers are sometimes remembered because they belong to important stages of his development, but number 10 was his defining Barcelona shirt.