Ah, The Best. An awards show to crown the cream of the crop. Did we not do this a few months ago?
FIFA and the Ballon d’Or, generally considered football’s most prestigious individual award ceremony, parted ways in 2016, with The Best forming in its wake. Unlike the Ballon d’Or, where journalists get the final say, The Best is selected by fans, a panel of journalists plus national team captains and coaches. Even better, all the votes are public.
The list of votes makes for interesting reading, highlighting rivalries and alliances. Cristiano Ronaldo, for example, has only voted for Messi once since 2010 — a second-placed finish behind Robert Lewandowski in 2020. Messi has voted for Ronaldo — his great rival and peer — twice: third in 2018 and second in 2019.
Despite winning The Best award for the third time on Monday evening, Messi did not go to London to collect the trophy. Instead, he continued pre-season training with new Inter Miami team-mate Luis Suarez in South Florida. But that’s the boring bit. Let us dig into who voted for who, as Messi and FC Barcelona and Spain midfielder Aitana Bonmati won the headline men’s and women’s awards.
GO DEEPER
Bonmati named women’s footballer of the year at The Best FIFA Football Awards
