The European Court of Justice has upheld a ruling by the EU's General Court in 2018 that the footballer's surname "Messi" is too well known for confusion to arise with the Spanish sports brand "Massi".
An interesting case / example of when the fame of an Applicant can counteract visual and phonetic similarities.
Massi, which sells cycle clothing and equipment, was successful in its initial challenge to the Barcelona striker's application. But it lost out when Lionel Messi brought an appeal to the General Court, which ruled in his favour.