Parents are legally banned from registering the name "Messi" as their newborn baby's first name.

Trouble-o-Meter
Registrars reject the paperwork until a new name is chosen.

Status: still on the books

Why Is This a Law?

After a father in another province named his son after soccer legend Lionel Messi, officials feared a massive wave of identical names. They proactively banned it to prevent total administrative chaos in the hometown.

A citizen earnestly dealing with the law: Parents are legally banned from registering the name "Messi" as their newborn baby's first name.