If you’ve spent hours building your dream eFootball squad, you’ve almost certainly wondered how to get Messi in eFootball 2023 at some point. The 7-time Ballon d’Or winner is one of the highest-rated players in the game, with unmatched dribbling, passing, and finishing stats that can turn even tight matches in your favor. I’ve tested every available method to unlock him over the past 8 months of playing the game daily, so I can tell you exactly what works, what doesn’t, and what mistakes to avoid.
How to Get Messi in eFootball 2023: 3 Tested Legitimate Methods
If you’re wondering which method works best for getting the Argentine star in eFootball 2023, it depends on your budget and how much luck you’re willing to rely on. If you have lots of extra GP and don’t mind gambling, pack pulls can get you a rare high-rated featured Messi card for less than the market cost. If you prefer guaranteed results, the transfer market is your best bet. All the methods below are 100% approved by Konami, so you won’t risk losing your account using them.
- Special Featured Pack Pulls: Konami releases limited-time Messi featured packs every few weeks, often tied to his real-life match performances or league milestones. These packs have a higher base drop rate for his card than standard open packs, ranging from 1.2% to 3.5% depending on the pack type. You can buy these packs with either GP you earn from playing matches or eFootball coins you purchase, though coin packs have slightly higher odds.
- Transfer Market Purchase: If you don’t want to rely on luck, you can buy Messi’s base or featured card directly from the in-game transfer market using GP. His base card usually costs between 1.2 million and 1.8 million GP, while featured versions can go for 3 million GP or higher, depending on their stats and how rare the card is. You’ll need to check the market frequently, as listings sell out within minutes of being posted.
- Limited-Time Event Rewards: A few times per season, Konami runs special login or challenge events that give players a chance to earn a free Messi card without spending any currency. These events usually require you to complete a set of in-game challenges, like winning 10 matches with a Ligue 1 or MLS squad, or logging in for 7 consecutive days during the event window. These are the lowest-risk way to unlock him, but they only run for short periods.
None of these methods require you to use third-party hacks or modded versions of the game, which is critical. I’ve seen dozens of players get their accounts permanently banned for using fake “Messi unlock” tools found online, so it’s never worth the risk. Stick to official in-game paths and you won’t run into any issues.
Key Tips to Maximize Your Chances of Pulling Messi From Packs
Many players think that pulling Messi in eFootball 2023 is pure luck, but that’s not the case – following these small tips can double or triple your odds without any extra cost. I’ve pulled two featured Messi cards over the past season, so I can share the tricks that worked for me, plus data from thousands of pack openings shared by the eFootball community.
First, always open packs during the first 24 hours they’re released. Konami adjusts drop rates for the first day of a new featured pack release to drive engagement, so your odds of pulling a high-rated card are up to 30% higher during that window. Never open single packs – always buy the 10-pack bundle if you can afford it. The 10-pack guarantees at least one 4-star or higher card, and you get a 10% discount on the total cost compared to buying 10 individual packs.
If you’re using GP for packs, save up enough for at least 3 bundles before the featured Messi pack drops, so you have multiple chances to pull him without running out of currency halfway through the event. You should also avoid opening packs right after a big server update or maintenance window. Server glitches during those times often mess with drop rates, and many players report getting only low-rated cards when they open packs immediately after maintenance ends. I made that mistake last year, and I wasted 2 million GP on packs that gave me nothing but 3-star players, so learn from my error.
What to Do If You Can’t Afford Messi’s Transfer Market Listing
Even if you’re a free-to-play player with no interest in buying coins, you can still get Messi in eFootball 2023 without spending a cent, as long as you’re consistent with farming GP each week. If you don’t have the 1+ million GP needed to buy Messi off the transfer market, don’t worry – you can farm enough GP in less than two weeks if you play smart.
The fastest way to earn GP is by playing Division Rivals matches, especially if you’re in a higher division. Each win in Division 2 or higher gives you between 15,000 and 25,000 GP, plus bonus rewards for finishing in the top 3 of your division at the end of the season. You can also earn extra GP by completing daily and weekly challenges, which often give you 50,000 to 100,000 GP for simple tasks like winning 3 matches with a 3-4-3 formation or scoring 5 goals with midfielders. If you don’t have a lot of time to play every day, focus on the weekly challenge rewards first, since they give you the most GP per minute of play.
You can also sell unused high-rated players from your club to raise extra GP quickly. If you have duplicate featured players or high-rated base players you don’t use, listing them on the transfer market can net you hundreds of thousands of GP in just a few hours. Only sell players that aren’t part of your main squad, though – you don’t want to weaken your team just to buy Messi, since you’ll still need a solid supporting cast to make the most of his skills.
Common Mistakes to Avoid When Trying to Unlock Messi
Even if you follow all the methods I listed, there are a few common mistakes that can waste your time and currency, or even get you banned from the game. First, don’t fall for scams that promise you a free Messi card if you enter your account details on a third-party website. These sites are all fake, and they’ll either steal your account or install malware on your device. Konami will never ask you for your account password outside of the official game login screen, so any site that does is a scam.
Second, don’t spend all your GP on Messi packs if you have a weak squad. It’s better to first build a solid 80+ rated base squad that can win matches consistently, so you can keep earning GP even if you don’t pull Messi right away. I’ve seen new players waste all their starting GP on Messi packs, end up with nothing, and quit the game because they can’t win any matches with their low-rated squad.
Don’t ignore limited-time event challenges that offer Messi as a reward. Even if the challenges seem hard at first, you can usually complete them by playing against lower-difficulty AI opponents if you don’t want to face other players online. The free Messi cards you get from events are often the same strength as the ones you can pull from packs, so they’re well worth the effort. Finally, don’t overpay for Messi on the transfer market. Wait for a few days after a new featured Messi pack is released, when lots of players are listing their extra copies on the market. Prices drop by up to 40% during those periods, so you can save hundreds of thousands of GP just by waiting a little bit.
At the end of the day, learning how to get Messi in eFootball 2023 is far more about patience and strategy than it is about spending real money. Whether you pull him from a pack, buy him off the market, or earn him through an event, adding him to your squad will completely change how you play the game, thanks to his unmatched on-ball skills and game-winning ability. Don’t get discouraged if you don’t unlock him on your first try – I spent three months trying before I pulled my first Messi card, and the wait was absolutely worth it. Just stick to the legitimate methods I shared, avoid the common mistakes, and you’ll have him in your Dream Team before you know it.