Andrés Iniesta

Andrés Iniesta Luján began playing football on the playground of his village school. He later joined Albacete, where he stood out in the Brunete tournament and caught the attention of Spain’s top clubs.

At just twelve years old, he entered La Masía, FC Barcelona’s legendary youth academy, and by sixteen he was already training with the first team under Lorenzo Serra Ferrer. Iniesta made his official debut in 2002 with Louis van Gaal and went on to become part of the most successful Barça side in history under Pep Guardiola, winning the historic sextuple in 2009 and another treble in 2015 under Luis Enrique.

He represented Spain in four World Cups—Germany 2006, South Africa 2010, Brazil 2014, and Russia 2018—and on July 11, 2010, in the 116th minute, scored the goal that secured Spain’s first and only World Cup title. “That goal belonged to all of us,” he said later, dedicating it on the pitch of Soccer City to his late friend Dani Jarque.

After his illustrious career at Barcelona, Iniesta went on to play for Vissel Kobe in Japan and Emirates Club in the United Arab Emirates.