Treble winner with Manchester City and 52 goals in the 2022/23 season. Erling Haaland would have deserved to be chosen as FIFA World Player of the Year – if it weren’t for Lionel Messi.
The fact that the Argentine world champion and last year’s winner once again made it onto the list of three finalists in the election comes as a bit of a surprise.
The 36-year-old had neither shown outstanding performances at his club Inter Miami from the North American Major League Soccer nor before at Paris Saint-Germain in 2023 – let alone won a major title.
Great popularity
Messi’s renewed election to the finalists by all coaches and captains of the national teams as well as specialist journalists and internet users is probably simply due to his great popularity. Everyone knows this man who has won the election seven times, more often than anyone else.
In terms of sport, Haaland is ahead
Erling Haaland, on the other hand, who is in the top 3 for the first time, had significantly more success than Messi, at least last season. The Norwegian top striker won the coveted treble of the championship, FA Cup and Champions League with Manchester City.
In the Premier League, the 23-year-old became top scorer with 36 goals and scored 52 goals in a total of 53 competitive games for the Citizens. Third in the league in the election is Messi’s French former club colleague Kylian Mbappe from Paris Saint-Germain. The decision will be announced at a gala on Monday (January 15, 2024) in London.
Spanish world champions favored
In the women’s category of “The Best FIFA Football Awards 2023”, the Spanish world champions Aitana Bonmati (FC Barcelona) and Jennifer Hermoso (CF Pachuca) must be considered the favorites to succeed their national team colleague Alexia Putellas. The third candidate is Colombia’s young star Linda Caicedo (Real Madrid).
Disappointment for German football
The best coaches and goalkeepers are also honored. There are no Germans to choose from either. In general, German football was only weakly represented on FIFA’s “shortlists” published last September, with up to 16 names each. Among the players, national team captain Ilkay Gündogan was the only German professional to be part of the extended group of candidates after winning the title with Manchester City. National goalkeeper Marc-Andre ter Stegen from Spanish champions FC Barcelona and Ann-Kathrin Berger from top London club Chelsea FC were also initially up for the goalkeeper awards.
Matthew won in 1991
The title of FIFA World Player of the Year has been awarded since 1991. The FIFA World Player of the Year has also been honored since 2001. The only German winner to date is Lothar Matthäus, who received the award at its premiere in 1991. In 2020 and 2021, at least one player from a Bundesliga club, Poland’s Robert Lewandowski from FC Bayern Munich, made it into the rankings.
Messi was already the winner of the Ballon d’Or
None of this should be confused with the Ballon d’Or, which has been awarded by the French trade magazine “France Football” since 1956. From 2010 to 2015, both prizes were awarded together as the “FIFA Ballon d’Or”, then separately again.
Messi, Haaland and Mbappé were only on stage at the most recent Ballon d’Or award ceremony at the end of October. The winner, you guessed it: Lionel Messi.