Barcelona's Messi matching Beckham, Ronaldinho global appeal

Barcelona whiz Lionel Messi is emerging as a global brand to challenge teammate Ronaldinho and Real Madrid star David Beckham.

McDonalds, X-Box, Mastercard, Adidas, Garbarino, Pepsi and Gatorade are just some of the big, global companies to have signed endorsement deals with the teenager - mainly to promote their products in Argentina.

However, Messi's father, Jorge, is also sifting through lucrative offers from Japan, where Lionel's profile is continuing to sky-rocket thanks to Barcelona's popularity in the Far East.