Lionel Messi has been once again recognized as the world’s best soccer player. The Argentina and Paris Saint-Germain forward was unveiled as the recipient of the Best FIFA Men’s Player award at the FIFA award ceremony in Paris on Monday night.
To win the award, Messi edged out his PSG teammate Kylian Mbappe and Real Madrid’s striker Karim Benzema. Messi finished at the top of the voting with 52 points, while Mbappe and Benzema received 44 and 34 votes, respectively.
“It’s amazing. It was a tremendous year, and it is an honor for me to be here tonight and win this award,” said Messi after receiving the award.
With the award, Messi capped off a successful 2022 year that saw him win the Ligue 1 title with PSG and World Cup trophy with Argentina. He also received FIFA World Cup Golden Ball as the tournament’s best player while finishing second on the top goalscorers list.
In other Best FIFA Award categories, Barcelona’s star midfielder Alexia Putellas won the Best FIFA Women’s award for the second straight year. Aston Villa’s Emiliano Martinez and Manchester United’s Mary Earps were recognized as the world’s best goalkeepers, while Argentina’s head coach Lionel Scaloni and England Women’s head coach Sarina Wiegman received the Best Coach awards.
