Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo picture which 'broke the internet' had hidden meaning behind it

Last year Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo teamed up for an internet-breaking picture and there was a hidden meaning behind it.

The two greatest footballers on the planet did a partnership with fashion giants Louis Vuitton.

And as part of it, Messi and Ronaldo were seen playing chess on a Louis Vuitton briefcase.

The iconic image was shared on both of their Instagram accounts, with the caption: "Victory is a State of Mind. A long tradition of crafting trunks photographed by @annieleibovitz for @louisvuitton."

The post racked up over 70 million likes across both Messi and Ronaldo's pages and became the most-liked picture on Instagram.

The pair were not in the same room for the photo and it was the power of editing which reunited them, though they did both set down for interviews.

It came just before the World Cup got underway in Qatar and immediately fans looked into the meaning behind the surreal snap.

The 'LV' briefcase was part of the 2018 World Cup in Russia and saw the trophy presented in it for the opening fixture and final.

As fans on social media suggested, playing chess on the briefcase that holds the World Cup essentially symbolises the battle to cement their place as the greatest of all time.

The box under… 🧐 pic.twitter.com/DSHRbB2Wa9

— TC (@totalcristiano) November 19, 2022

And it was Messi who won the contest, skippering Argentina to a first World Cup win since 1986.

La Albiceleste won on penalties against France after a stunning 3-3 draw. Messi scored seven goals in a stunning tournament which would secure him an eighth Ballon d'Or.

Ronaldo's campaign did not go to plan as he was dropped for Portugal's two knockout games as they were knocked out by Morocco in the quarter-finals.

The two did not get a final showdown on the world stage but did meet a few weeks after in Saudi Arabia when PSG played a Riyadh XI captained by Ronaldo

And they are due to lock horns in a lucrative friendly between Al Nassr and Inter Miami on 1 February.

However, the fixture has been thrown into doubt after Al Nassr cancelled their tour of China due to Ronaldo suffering an unspecified injury.