Quick Look: 43015 Lionel Messi – Football Legend
Posted by Huw,
In addition to the four football highlights sets that have just been released, two football legend sets featuring large-scale figures of popular players have also just dropped: 43015 Lionel Messi – Football Legend and 43016 Cristiano Ronaldo – Football Legend.
it's not made clear on the boxes that these are actually 2-in-1 sets, with instructions and pieces provided for building one of two models.
Summary
43015 Lionel Messi – Football Legend, 958 pieces.
£69.99 / $79.99 / €79.99 | 7.3p, 8.3c, 8.3c per piece.
Buy at LEGO.com »
Another no expense spared Editions set, but one that'll appeal only to Messi fans
The set was provided for review by LEGO. All opinions expressed are those of the author.
Argentinian player Lionel Andrés Messi is one of the top goalscorers in football history. He led his national team to victory in the 2022 World Cup, and is widely regarded as one of the greatest football players of all time.
When opening the box you are presented with two instruction manuals and have to decide which model you want to make: the player in a dynamic running pose, or with arms raised.
We opted for the 'looking up, arms raised, and index fingers pointed upwards' pose as shown on the front of the box, a gesture which the player has said is dedicated to his grandmother, who passed away when he was young.
The attacker who's attired in his country's national kit, stands in front of a large number 10 which is made using drum-lacquered gold tiles. That extravagance, and having all decorated parts printed, as we've come to expect in these Editions sets, suggests once again that no expense has been spared in these sports-related models.
The figure is firmly affixed to the base and in fact can't be removed at all without disassembly, otherwise I would have done so to take a better picture of the number 10.
The head moulds in the two sets are different, surprisingly, and the printing here helps make it a reasonable resemblance to the Argentinian player.
Right: Bryan Berlin, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
The tattoos on his right arm, which include a lotus flower and a rosary, have been printed on two parts.
There are a good few hundred pieces left over that are used for building the other variant, more than I expected, that some people might see as a waste that inflates the price, and others might be pleased to add to their stock.
Let's take a quick look at Ronaldo while we are at it...
Of the two, I prefer the model of Messi, which I think is a better likeness.
They don't do much for me, but I appreciate the care and attention that have been put into them, and I don't think the price is too bad either: £69.99, $79.99, €79.99 for just under 1,000 pieces.
I gave Ronaldo to my football-mad Manchester United supporting son-in-law and he loves it, so I guess there may well be a market for them: just not necessarily within the Brickset community.
57 likes
38 comments on this article
Not for me, but I imagine they will sell very well to their fans.
They could have included a new large figure cloth piece with this one, to reproduce the cape he received at the last world cup.
It still looks strange to me; Messi and Ronaldo with eight fingers
About time for another hobby.
@Fancyfair said:
"It still looks strange to me; Messi and Ronaldo with eight fingers"
Like Micky Mouse!
Those buildable figures look extremely creepy!
You couldn't pay me enough to take these monstrosities off your hands. I honestly think I would prefer a Homemaker-version of Nova in highlighter-yellow over these abominations.
Do they dispense Pez when you open their necks?
Uhm, what are the green slopes meant to represent? I'm not a football fan, but I've never noticed anything like those on any field.
@Space_Police said:
"Those buildable figures look extremely creepy!"
Even... messi?
Not to be all "are we the baddies" but every time I see everyone (myself included) nodding in agreement over some ugly/overpriced/who-would-buy-this model, I inevitably see it displayed in a colleague's office or friend's house, often times being the only LEGO set they own.
So the hypothesis that world civilisation started declining because Pharaoh's Quest went off the shelves still remains an open question.
If it included a second yellow card and a crying face I would have been tempted.
Just kidding so not my thing
Finally!!
A Lego set that is cheaper than buying the thing in real life.
@watcher21 said:
"If it included a second yellow card and a crying face I would have been tempted.
Just kidding so not my thing"
Or maybe a buildable rubbish bin and a tile with "Tax Bill" written on it in Spanish to put in it. And better still, it could be used in both these sets.
@CCC said:
" @watcher21 said:
"If it included a second yellow card and a crying face I would have been tempted.
Just kidding so not my thing"
Or maybe a buildable rubbish bin and a tile with "Tax Bill" written on it in Spanish to put in it. And better still, it could be used in both these sets."
And maybe, he's got another letter in his back pocket that reads, "Sorry, Dad. Thanks again."
Messi and Ronnie should also both come with alternate Arabic headresses made of out cash.
Those faces are giving me Star Wars Constraction figure flashbacks. These may even be worse.
Strange they couldn't combine both posses in the same Messi figure and look near identical apart from thigh. The alternative banana kick of Rolando should be the main model, whereas the above looks like a goalkeeper who has let one in through his legs.
With the hands up like that, it's too bad you can't pose the Messi figure leaning forward slightly, to make him look like he just tripped over the ball. It'd be a more accurate representation of professional football.
It will appeal only to buildable humanoid character fans, which, especially given the second word mentioned, I cannot grasp the possibility of there being many of.
@jkb said:
" @Space_Police said:
"Those buildable figures look extremely creepy!"
Even... messi?"
They all look like they are constipated
(Regarding the photo of the Ronaldo figure off of its base)
Is that what passes for cleats nowadays? Man, athletic gear is getting out of hand!
@LuccaTalksYT said:
"It will appeal only to buildable humanoid character fans, which, especially given the second word mentioned, I cannot grasp the possibility of there being many of."
I feel it's important to remember that, just because you can't fathom something, doesn't mean it's truly unfathomable.
Real life Messi looks like an Albert Uderzo character (you know the drawing artist behind Asterix) to me. Every time that i see Messi upclose i want to read comics.
"As you might expect, the Ronaldo and Messi models share the same head mould"
That bit surprised me, since looking at the pictures, both head pieces look different, Ronaldo's one looking more square-ish with prominent cheeks, and Messi's one with a steeper jawline.
Franz Beckenbauer when?
Bobby Charlton
Zinedine Zidane
Diego Armando Maradona
Those to me are far more legendary than the two portrayed (who imho are highly overrated especially CR7 whom I absolutely hate. He should be credited as "actor" rather than footballer, for his constant theatrical impressions of falling or being hurt, only to play on like nothing has happened seconds later, when the referee doesn't fall for it).
@Harmonious_Building said:
"Not to be all "are we the baddies" but every time I see everyone (myself included) nodding in agreement over some ugly/overpriced/who-would-buy-this model, I inevitably see it displayed in a colleague's office or friend's house, often times being the only LEGO set they own.
So the hypothesis that world civilisation started declining because Pharaoh's Quest went off the shelves still remains an open question. "
Hypothesis? I vote we move that to theory, that theme was awesome!
@LuccaTalksYT said:
"It will appeal only to buildable humanoid character fans, which, especially given the second word mentioned, I cannot grasp the possibility of there being many of."
That sounds like a you problem.
In a promo video for the Messi set, LEGO shows a specially printed Greatest Of All Time piece. Is that not included in the set? Seems like poor taste in a promo, if it's not.
https://www.instagram.com/p/DXhn4uJDWVx/
@ShinyBidoof said:
"I was going to question why liking Lego and football was so unlikely but the replies so far suggest that is the case.
I suppose it is similar to the reaction on here to the BTS set, even though their were millions of fans worldwide who would buy it."
Only strange thing is that said BTS set was on constant deep discount even at LEGO's own online store for months, and one of the last sets still available in the bargains section there at the time.
Why have such high discounts for such a long period of time if according to you it was such a big seller?
I think I heard from LEGO Star Wars fans here that popular sets don't need to be discounted because they sell no matter the price...
@TheOtherMike said:
" @LuccaTalksYT said:
"It will appeal only to buildable humanoid character fans, which, especially given the second word mentioned, I cannot grasp the possibility of there being many of."
That sounds like a you problem."
The comments-section is about to get Messi.
@AustinPowers said:
" highly overrated especially CR7 whom I absolutely hate."
...Football fans...
The faces look awful. It would have been even better with a blank face.
Looks kind of Messi to me.
@ShinyBidoof said:
"I was going to question why liking Lego and football was so unlikely but the replies so far suggest that is the case.
"
I like LEGO and I like football. However, I'm not really a fan of the celebrity footballer. I know there have always been popular footballers but the way the game has gone, it has created many players that are bigger than their teams and these two are the epitome of this.
@CCC said:
" @ShinyBidoof said:
"I was going to question why liking Lego and football was so unlikely but the replies so far suggest that is the case.
"
I like LEGO and I like football. However, I'm not really a fan of the celebrity footballer. I know there have always been popular footballers but the way the game has gone, it has created many players that are bigger than their teams and these two are the epitome of this. "
That's one of the reasons I hate guys like Ronaldo so much.
Football is a team sport and the ones I would call true legends of the game are those who may well have known how good they were but always put themselves after the team.
Then again, football these days isn't a sport I can get behind any longer anyway, ever since crazy money has taken over. Football used to be a humble sport for everyone.
Just look at the insane amounts of money on the transfer market. Or the salaries of top players. Or the ticket prices, particularly at (but certainly not limited to) the upcoming World Cup. Or the massive corruption at organizations like FIFA.
It's become a disgusting sport and a disgrace.
based on previous lego x football collab sets, that didn't seem to sell well, the venn diagram between lego and football fans seems very small to go all out like this.
I'm a football fan as well as an AFOL and I find it difficult to justify the price tag on many of these FIFA 2026 sets
@Yoritomo said:
"based on previous lego x football collab sets, that didn't seem to sell well, the venn diagram between lego and football fans seems very small to go all out like this."
Keep in mind that the Sports sets were only really marketed to FOLs (and young ones at that), not sports people. If anything, these are the other way around.
Not my cup of tea and it feels weird to see actual people depicted in this style. But I think these are mostly successful at depicting what they aimed to depict. So if people enjoy these because they are fans I would be happy for them.
These do feel a bit like gigantic a corporation shaking hands with another gigantic corporation, which isn't a great feeling to me, personally. But I guess that that's off topic to the sets themselves.
These are so goofy looking.
@ubik_bricks said:
""As you might expect, the Ronaldo and Messi models share the same head mould"
That bit surprised me, since looking at the pictures, both head pieces look different, Ronaldo's one looking more square-ish with prominent cheeks, and Messi's one with a steeper jawline."
You are right -- I assumed, looking at the photos. Article corrected.