BBC Homepage
  • Skip to content
  • Accessibility Help
  • Your account
  • Notifications
  • Home
  • News
  • Sport
  • Weather
  • iPlayer
  • Sounds
  • Bitesize
  • CBBC
  • CBeebies
  • Food
  • More menu
More menu
Search BBC
  • Home
  • News
  • Sport
  • Weather
  • iPlayer
  • Sounds
  • Bitesize
  • CBBC
  • CBeebies
  • Food
Close menu
BBC News
Menu
  • Home
  • InDepth
  • Israel-Gaza war
  • War in Ukraine
  • Climate
  • UK
  • World
  • Business
  • Politics
  • Culture
More
  • Tech
  • Science
  • Health
  • Family & Education
  • In Pictures
  • Newsbeat
  • BBC Verify
  • Disability
  • BBC Trending

Messi's 'biggest fan' probably not in Dohuk

  • Published
    20 January 2016
Share page
About sharing
A boy wearing a Lionel Messi football shirt made out of a carrier bagImage source, Twitter
BBC Trending
What's popular and why

Have you seen this boy?

This heart-warming image has captivated thousands online and sparked an international hunt for the child in the photo. But the Twitter user who seems to have directed the search towards Dohuk in Iraq has admitted to BBC Trending that he made that bit up.

It's easy to see why the photo captured people's attention. Seemingly unable to afford a replica shirt of football superstar Lionel Messi - in the blue and white stripes of Argentina's national team - the boy is wearing a plastic carrier bag in similar colours. The star's name and number are scrawled in pen on the back of the makeshift shirt.

"Too cute! Hope they find him," read one typical tweet. "Little boy in war-torn Iraq wears a Lionel Messi football shirt made from a plastic bag," read another.

Many of those who have shared the photo on social media have also repeated rumours that the boy is thought to be from the Dohuk in the Kurdish region of Iraq. Reports that Messi himself is trying to contact the boy to give him a proper shirt are also rife online. The hunt is on, but as yet "Messi's biggest fan" has yet to be located.

In the hope of shedding light on the mystery, Trending contacted people on the ground in Dohuk who say that while the landscape could indeed be from a rural area nearby, it was impossible to be certain.

So where did the rumours of the Kurdish connection originate from?

Most of the speculation about the boy's whereabouts seem to trace back to a Twitter user @illMindOfRobin. He posted the picture on 13 January, two full days before it was picked up widely elsewhere. "Messi in Kurdistan" and "Messi in Duhok, Iraq" he wrote when posting the photo.

Original TweetImage source, @illMondOfRobin / Twitter

But more recently on his feed he has ridiculed the media for running with the suggestion, and states directly that he had been joking. "I was the first one to share this and said it was Duhok out of bants [for a laugh] because my parents are from there."

Tweet conversationImage source, @illMindOfRobin / Twitter

OK, so he made have made that bit up, but where did he get the photo from originally?

"Been going through my Facebook feed for ages still can't find where I found this pic," he laments in another tweet.

Speaking to BBC Trending @illMindOfRobin says he's a high school student living in Sweden. His parents grew up in Dohuk and he says he just wanted to give the place some "slight recognition".

When Trending asked him if, given his interests, it was likely that he had found the photo on Kurdish social media. He agreed that could well have been the case.

So the location of where the photo was taken and the story behind it remain a mystery.

And what about the claims that Lionel Messi wants to send a shirt to his elusive young fan?

This rumour seems to have emerged on Monday when a Messi fan account tweeted: "We got DM from [Lionel Messi]'s team. They want to know who this kid is so that Leo can arrange something for him. RT & spread." But as yet this has not been publicly confirmed by the footballer himself.

And so for now, at least, the search continues.

Blog by Richard Irvine-Brown

Next story: Sunny Leone wows web over grilling about porn past

Picture of Sonny LeoneImage source, Getty Images

Bollywood star Sunny Leone has won admiration for the way she responded to an interviewer who asked if she was a morally corrupting influence. READ MORE

You can follow BBC Trending on Twitter @BBCtrending, external, and find us on Facebook, external. All our stories are at bbc.com/trending.

Related topics

  • Social media
  • BBC Trending
  • Iraq

More on this story

  • Messi wins fifth Ballon d'Or award

    • Attribution
      Sport
    • Published
      11 January 2016
    Carli Lloyd and Lionel Messi
  • Pogba outdresses Messi at Ballon d'Or

    • Attribution
      Sport
    • Published
      11 January 2016
  • Thursday's gossip column

    • Attribution
      Sport
    • Published
      14 January 2016
    Gossip logo

Top stories

  • Asylum seekers to stay at Epping hotel after government wins appeal

    • Published
      57 minutes ago
  • Asylum hotel ruling won't feel like much of a victory at Home Office

    • Published
      6 hours ago
  • Zelensky rejects proposals for buffer zone to end Ukraine war

    • Published
      5 hours ago

More to explore

  • Asylum hotel ruling won't feel like much of a victory at Home Office

    Home Secretary Yvette Cooper, a middle aged woman with short grey hair, stares intently at the camera. She is wearing a pink jacket
  • Why has Kamala Harris' security detail been withdrawn?

    Kamala Harris at a podium with three Secret Service agents in the background during a trip to Zambia in 2023.
  • How a leaked phone call derailed the Thai PM's career - and the Shinawatra dynasty

    Thailand's suspended prime minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra arrives for a press conference in Bangkok on July 1, 2025. She can be seen smiling as she walks through a doorway in a dark green blazer which she is wearing over a white shirt and white and blue floral skirt.
  • Football Manager 25 would have damaged us forever, says maker

    A rendered promo image for Football Manager. A female manager stands on the sidelines of a football pitch. She's wearing white shoes, and a black suit with her hands in her pockets. It's evening time as the sun appears to be setting. The pitch is lit up, with players wearing red kits and white kits. A male referee stands further away with a flag in hand.
  • What is chickenpox and how can I get my child vaccinated?

    A boy with chickenpox has used calamine lotion on his spots to reduce itching
  • Emma Stone dazzles Venice with alien kidnap drama

    Emma Stone attends the "Bugonia" red carpet during the 82nd Venice International Film Festival on August 28, 2025 in Venice, Italy.
  • 'India put us on the boat like captives - then threw us in the sea'

    Soyed Noor (centre) and some of the other refugees speak to the BBC via a video call from Myanmar
  • A 'joyful' girl and a boy who loved sports - Victims in Minneapolis shooting identified

    From left: Harper Moyski, 10, and Fletcher Merkel, 8. Harper is smiling at the camera with wind in her hair. Fletcher is leaning on a railing and wearing a red shirt while smiling
  • What has changed 20 years on from Hurricane Katrina?

    • Attribution
      Weather
    A flooded street in New Orleans with damaged houses, debris and an overturned vehicle
loading elsewhere stories

Most read

  1. 1

    BBC Proms performance interrupted by pro-Palestinian protesters

  2. 2

    Zelensky rejects proposals for buffer zone to end Ukraine war

  3. 3

    Tories call for investigation into Rayner's tax affairs

  4. 4

    Why has Kamala Harris' security detail been withdrawn?

  5. 5

    US to stop Palestinians attending UN meeting in New York

  6. 6

    Cycling race website censors name of Welsh village

  7. 7

    'Our baby was robbed of dignity after she died'

  8. 8

    Asylum seekers to stay at Epping hotel after government wins appeal

  9. 9

    Asylum hotel ruling won't feel like much of a victory at Home Office

  10. 10

    Madeleine McCann suspect to be released in less than three weeks

BBC News Services

  • On your mobile
  • On smart speakers
  • Get news alerts
  • Contact BBC News

Best of the BBC

  • Rolf Larsen investigates the case of a missing child

    • Attribution
      iPlayer
    DNA
  • Comedian Bob Mortimer chooses his desert island tracks

    • Attribution
      Sounds
    Desert Island Discs: Bob Mortimer
  • Freddie Mercury: from iconic shots to private snaps

    • Attribution
      iPlayer
    A Life in Ten Pictures: Freddie Mercury
  • When an Olympic badminton match caused controversy

    • Attribution
      Sounds
    Sporting Witness: Shuttlecock scandal
  • Home
  • News
  • Sport
  • Weather
  • iPlayer
  • Sounds
  • Bitesize
  • CBBC
  • CBeebies
  • Food
  • Terms of Use
  • About the BBC
  • Privacy Policy
  • Cookies
  • Accessibility Help
  • Parental Guidance
  • Contact the BBC
  • Make an editorial complaint
  • BBC emails for you

Copyright © 2025 BBC. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. Read about our approach to external linking.