I second your post Deb.
I was going to write something similar but now that you have done it I will focus on further differentiating the professional significator.
Unfortunately there is not enough personal information about Messi (excluding football statistics) and even some false autobiograhies have been written about him. He is expected to publish his one some time in the future. When he does, then it will be much easier.
Also, the thing is that his chart does not behave at all, as I like to say. Not only many planets aspect the MC, as you wrote, but Mercury disposes Venus and the Moon and Mercury is conjunct the antiscion of Venus, which really complicates things.
Nevetheless, as I wrote in my first post, I firmly maintain that it is Venus which is the main professional significator, with Mercury and Jupiter participating. So it is not either or, it is both, but Venus is the leading one.
And the the accidents of this native prove that to a large extent. I took all data from
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lionel_Messi Here is what I discovered today:
When the Sun was directed to Venus in mid September 2005,
?On 16 September, for the second time in three months, Barcelona announced an update to Messi's contract; this time it was improved to pay him as a first team member and extended until June 2014. Messi obtained Spanish citizenship on 26 September 2005.
I don?t think this primary direction requires any explanation, but still ? we have an unimpeded benefic natally in the 2nd House coming to the body to the significator of profession which is the Almuten of the MC and is in the Asc, also conjunct the Moon, ruler of the second ? a significant amount of money coming to the native as a result of his profession and his own name and actions. Of course the change of citizenship concerns one?s status ? 10th House, ruled by Venus.
On Oct 5 2005 we have the Moon, with latitude, coming to the conjunction of the Lot of Profession ? the Moon rules the 2nd House of finances, aspects the MC and is in the Asc and conjunct Venus, hence she also participates in the profession and brings popularity and money.
Messi made his full debut for the Argentina senior national football team on August 17 2005 ? at that time the profected Moon came within 3 days of the opposition of natal Venus, made a square to the MC and was moving to the conjunction of natal Saturn within 6 days. We have Venus activated again.
Between June 29-September 2009 when the square of the MC was directed to the Lot of Profession (which is in Taurus) and when Venus was also at the same time directed to the conjunction of the Lot of Profession, Messi established the Leo Messi Foundation, a charity supporting access to education and health care for vulnerable children.
It does not say the month when this happened. Still the profections help. I do not know where he was on his birthday so I will use his natal place of birth.
The profections help because in 2007-2008 Messi had a 9th House year ruled by Saturn and this activates the opposition with Venus and the Moon and at the same time his natal Ascendant reached the 5th House of children and of course Venus especially and to an extent the Moon signify children. Also, Venus rules the natal 5th House where Saturn, the Lord of the Year, is exalted.
So in the natal location revolution for 2007, we have Venus conjunct Saturn in the 5th House and Saturn rules the revolution 10th and 11th and the 11th natal House rises where Jupiter is placed and Jupiter rules children, mercy etc.
I don?t see how more obvious it can get.
At the same time from Aug 2006 to 2011 Venus rules the term of the MC and Mercury, the sign ruler of the Ascendant
and Almutem Figuris enters the term of Venus in June 2006 (if Morinus calculates this correctly)
On December 1 2009 Messi won his first Golden Ball ? the highest individual prize for a football player. At that time, with the 6 am chart, by converse Solar arc, the Head of the Dragon was at 15.48 Pisces conjunct his MC within 48 minutes. If we move the time with 2 minutes and 27 seconds ahead the aspect becomes exact. Note: I have used this time to for the other directions ? 6.02 27 am.
On January 9 2012 Messi received his 3rd Golden Ball - only 3 other football players have done that in football history (it must be said that it was not until 1995 when it was made possible for non-Europeans to win the Golden Ball). At that time, the Sun at 25.44 Cancer, was conjunct the antiscion of the natal Ascendant (4.28 Gemini), by converse Solar arc., within 12 minutes.
But as I said, Mercury also participates in the profession. He rules the term of both the Ascendant and MC. On November 16 2003 Messi played his first match for the Barcelona senior team. In that year?s revolution we had a Venus-Mercury conjunction in Gemini that reached the place of natal Venus and Moon and of course he had a 5th House year by profections, ruled by Venus.
When it comes to injuries it is difficult to distinguish Mercury for the profession because he is the ruler of the Ascendant after all. In the 2005 revolution he had a Venus Mercury Saturn conjunction in Cancer come to the place of natal Mars, ruler of the natal 6th and Venus ruled the revolution 12th of hospitals and major illness. At the same time his Hilaj Moon was opposing this triple conjunction in the revolution, the Lord of the Year was Jupiter and he was in the revolution 12th and opposed by Mars ruling the revolution Ascendant and in the return 6th. His season ended prematurely on 7 March 2006, however, when he suffered a muscle tear in his right thigh against Chelsea. At that time the there was a sinister sextile of his Hilaj Moon directed to Mars dated on February 23 2006.
About Margherita? sarcastic remarks about determining Venus as the professional significator.
You Margherita obviously approach Astrology in a different way than I do. I never study a planet only by its universal nature as you have done. In this chart Venus is modified first by its House position and the masculine sign it is, then by the Moon conjunction, then by the Saturn opposition, then by the Mercury antiscion, then by her dispositor Mercury, then by her being oriental and coming out of the beams of the Sun, then by being in her own term, then by being in the decan of Mars, then by being in the 12th part of Sagittarius, then by ruling the 5th and 10th House, the Lots of Spirit, Profession, Siblings, Children, Illness, Resignation, Adultery in Marriage, etc etc.
Thus and because of all these modifications can besides painters Venus show dozens of other professions. And after all, she is in a sign of agility lightness and mobility as you said.
I never wrote that Venus rules football, I do not think it is that simple because with very very few exceptions everything is a mixture, and this is particularly true for professions.
But football and especially this modern version is definitely not ruled by Mars. Yes it has physical contact and Mars is partnering in signification but in its essence, this sport is about outsmarting the opponent and trying to deceive them. For example you can?t severely injure the opponent because there are sanctions, but you could do that if the referee has turned their back from you and will not see you. Also, this sport has increasingly become one of simulation and trying to deceive the referee so that he gives the harshest punishment ? penalty, which is 90% a certain goal. Also, trying to convince the referees that you have been hit or maltreated so that they send an opponent off thus reducing the numbers of your opponent for the rest of the match. In fact, I have heard from other athletes, especially from tough sports such a rugby, wrestling, hockey etc say that football is not played by real men, but by cowards and ballerinas, because they would never go for such deception and trickery.
Also and for this reason, how does the defence of a team act in most cases? They are trying to move in a such a way so that the attacking players of the opponent are placed in an offside position. Words are difficult to explain this, you have to see it. It is a mixture of Venus and Mercury: one moment it looks like one team is about to concede a goal and is in a very vulnerable position, but in the other, the defenders have moved forward and placed the attacking players of the opponent in offside, thus not only eliminating the danger but gaining possession of the ball.
Moreover how are goals increasingly scored? From outsmarting the opponent?s defence by starting to run for the ball about 1 second before the defenders move forward and try to place you in an offside position.
I have done enough digging on this chart and provided evidence. If someone wants to disprove that by showing how Venus is not related at all to the profession they can always try but do so from the chart and not from what somebody wrote (Tienka Atema quoted 2 other ancient authors and I agreed with that testimony in my first sentence about the significator of profession; I did not make anything up

)
I was about to post this when I saw Margherita?s reply. Dear, you are not playing fair or have not understood what the text says. I will post the first paragraph as well.
Therefore Venus is not only "set up on those places and on Fortune" but is to be preferred because of other considerations as well, namely Venus is astronomically visible, coming out of the Sun?s beams, receiving the application of the Moon, ruling the Lots of Spirit and Profession, being the exalted ruler and the MC and most closely aspecting the MC.
It will be indeed difficult for me to think of another natal chart with a potential professional significator that meets all these criteria.
