Lionel Messi is considered by many to be the 'GOAT' of football.The brilliant acronym, which stands for 'greatest of all time', has become synonymous with the Paris Saint-Germain star as he competes with Pele, Cristiano Ronaldo and Diego Maradona to be considered the sport's number one in history.And while you all no doubt have a strong opinion on whether or not Messi deserves that title either way, we can all agree that him and his seven Ballon d'Or trophies at least deserve to be in the conversation.

Messi and the GOAT debate

But even if there are still ardent Messi haters shaking their heads at that statement, nobody is going to be able to forget the 'GOAT' narrative surrounding the Argentine superstar next season.

That's because Messi and the PSG squad will literally have the word 'GOAT' on their shirts for the 2022/23 campaign.

This week, the French champions released their new home for the upcoming season, cutting a divisive look of a central white stripe with red trimmings on the club's classic navy background.

However, far more fans were pointing out what was going on with the sponsors on said jersey as opposed to, say, the centralised club badge and Nike tick.

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Messi will be wearing 'GOAT' on his shirt

Why? Well, because the Parisians were debuting two sponsors that hadn't featured on the previous Accor-led designs: Qatar Airways and GOAT.

And with the airline sponsor taking pride of place smack-bang in the middle of the torso, the simple four-letter word so often associated with Messi can be seen straight-forwardly adorning the sleeve.

There's something about the fact that you wouldn't necessarily know that the 'GOAT' detail was even a logo that makes it even better, so be sure to check out snaps of the brilliant design flourish down below:

It just feels so, so right, doesn't it?

Who are GOAT?

Now, it's all well and good that the 'GOAT' feature is a sponsorship logo as opposed to PSG cheekily referencing the debate themselves, but what actually is the company in question and what do they do?

Well, according to Goal, GOAT linked up with PSG near the backend of last season as an official partner and it was agreed that their sponsor would be stamped on the sleeves of 2022/23 training, warm-up and matchday shirts.

They are an online platform, which boasts more than 30 million members around the world, offering luxury clothing items and accessories via primary and resale markets.

PSG's Messi warms up.
Soccer Football - Ligue 1 - Paris St Germain v Lille - Parc des Princes, Paris, France - October 29, 2021 Paris St Germain's Lionel Messi during the warm up REUTERS/Sarah Meyssonnier

Soccer Football - Ligue 1 - Paris St Germain v Lille - Parc des Princes, Paris, France - October 29, 2021 Paris St Germain's Lionel Messi during the warm up REUTERS/Sarah Meyssonnier

PSG's chief partnerships officer, Marc Armstrong, said of the collaboration in April: "We are delighted to welcome GOAT into the Paris Saint-Germain family. Thanks to this partnership, GOAT joins the tight list of club partners present on our emblematic jerseys.

"GOAT is the ideal partner for the club. It reinforces our position as an icon of sport and style with fans around the world. Together, we will develop exciting and creative experiences to delight fans everywhere."

Come on, Marc, admit it... you just wanted to say: "GOAT is the ideal partner for the club because Messi is the GOAT." Don't deny it.