Messi’s first contract was signed on a napkin!
It’s a well known fact that Lionel Messi had a medical condition that could have ended his entire footballing career, despite of being a highly talented footballer even at his age. Nobody really wanted to take up a player who could potentially die in a football match. But Messi’s family convinced Carles Rexach, then-Barcelona’s sporting director to give the young player a chance in the youth team.
After watching Messi play for a few seconds, Rexach recognized the talent of this terrific footballer and wanted to sign him immediately, but had neither a formal contract or a piece of paper with him. All he had was this napkin and he drafted a formal contract to sign him.