Argentine football superstar Lionel Messi has revealed his decision on the likelihood of him going for a 9th Ballon d’Or award.
The Barcelona legend and Inter Miami sensation clinched his 8th Ballon d’Or award in Paris on Monday, October 30, 2023.
He saw off the challenge from former PSG teammate Kylian Mbappe and Manchester City wonder striker Erling Haaland to clinch the award.
It was another big moment for the Argentine standing tall at the Theatre du Chatelet in front of esteemed football guests to add the coveted football award to his medal kit.
The official presentation of the award was done by English football legend and football investor David Beckham who doubled as Lionel Messi’s new employer.
In a symbolic move David Beckham handed the prestigious award to Lionel Messi with pride and has gone ahead to immortalize the moment by remodeling Inter Miami logo to reflect that invaluable moment of history – an Inter Miami player crowned as the best player in the world.
Meanwhile, Lionel Messi’s 8th Ballon d’Or success wasn’t without wrangles as usual. Some pundits contested the decision to award the trophy to the Argentine instead of Erling Haaland who won a treble with Manchester City coupled with an outstanding individual campaign.
Erling Haaland finished second on the Ballon d’Or ranking and earned a shout-out from Lionel Messi who recognized his remarkable performance with Manchester City last term.
Lionel Messi reveals decision in going for a 9th Ballon d’Or Award
Messi first won the Ballon d’Or at the age of 22 in 2009 and has went on to win it eight times, more than any other player in the history of the award.
He would have probably laid his hands on his final Ballon d’Or and has been ruled out of a chance to go for a ninth Ballon d’Or.
In a quote shared by b360sports, Lionel Messi revealed he has no plan of going for a ninth Ballon d’Or award, and did not envisaged himself adding the 2023 edition to his trophy shelf.
“Do I dream about the Ballon d’Or? No, no, I stop thinking about the the Ballon d’Or a while ago, and winning it was never a priority to me, especially now that I have everything in my career.”
“I think this will be my last Ballon d’Or, and I am happy to have achieve everything, and be the player with 8 Ballon d’Ors.”
Messi became the first footballer outside the shores of Europe to win the Ballon d’Or. He currently plies his trade with Inter Miami and is closing in on the end of his epic career.
