The 31-year-old old released the amount to help complete a £26.4million appeal raising funds to help combat the illness in Spain.

The Barcelona captain gave the funds through his Leo Messi Foundation to aid the building of the SJD Pediatric Cancer Center.

The fundraising of the paediatric center started last year to reel in the biggest total public funding in Spain's history for the building.

And with Messi's £2.37million donation, the £26.4million target has been met making way for the construction of the project to begin.

And an estimated 400 children will be treated every year once it is completed and a major increase on the current numbers able to access the facility.

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Messi said: "With this initiative, we continue to fight against the cruel disease that is cancer.”