Messi, the dog, is having a moment. Dare we say, he's now just as popular as Messi, the soccer player?

Messi — the pup who played Snoop in “Anatomy of a Fall,” which was a five-time nominee and winner of "Best Original Screenplay" — had an eventful showing at The Oscars on Sunday. He appeared to sit in the audience wearing a handsome black bowtie, and he clapped his paws. (We know it was all an act, just play along).

Messi even raised his leg above Matt Damon’s star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame to help out Oscars host Jimmy Kimmel with a joke. (He really didn’t pee and was always going to be good boy, whether he did or not).

Messi easily stole the show, reaffirming why he should win a Pawscar for his incredible acting.

“Even though he’s a dog, may have given the performance of the year in ‘Anatomy of a Fall,’” Kimmel said when introducing Messi.

Who is Messi (the dog) named after?

Messi is a 7-year-old Border Collie named after soccer superstar Lionel Messi.

Messi’s trainer, Laura Martin Contini, is a professional dog trainer who lives outside of Paris. She adopted him from a neighbor when he was a puppy, she told The Guardian last month.

Here’s the best part: Martin Contini said the neighbor was surprised when she picked “the ugliest dog of the litter.”

Martin Contini said “there was something about him” and her two children named Messi after the soccer legend.

USA TODAY Sports reached out to representatives for Messi the soccer player to get his take on another Messi rising to fame. There was no immediate response.

Messi, the original one, played for French soccer team Paris Saint-Germain from 2021-2023 after starring for FC Barcelona in Spain for much of his legendary career. A 2022 World Cup champion with Argentina, Messi is currently playing with Inter Miami in Major League Soccer in the United States.

His move to the United States made waves, and Messi has dominated headlines and commanded and massive audience wherever he goes. He also recently passed 500 million Instagram followers, making him the second-most followed person in the world. (Ronaldo is the first, but there's no Oscar-worthy dog named after him.)

Similarly, Messi (the dog) saw his popularity explode after traveling from his home country of France to work the awards circuit in America.

But despite another Messi bursting onto the pop culture scene, you need not fear confusing them. One is a GOAT. One is a dog.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Who is 'Messi the dog'? At the Oscars, pup steals hearts and headlines