The Best FIFA Men's Player is an association football award presented annually by the sport's governing body, FIFA, since 2016, to honour the player deemed to have performed the best over the previous calendar year.[1] The award was formerly known as the FIFA World Player of the Year, which was merged with France Football's Ballon d'Or in 2010 to become the FIFA Ballon d'Or in a six-year partnership.[2]
| The Best FIFA Men's Player | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Date | 2016 |
| Presented by | FIFA |
| Formerly called | FIFA World Player of the Year (1991–2009) FIFA Ballon d'Or (2010–2015) |
| First awarded | 2016 |
| Current holder |  Lionel Messi(3rd award) |
| Most awards | Lionel Messi (3 awards) |
| Website | fifa.com |
History
In 2010, the FIFA World Player of the Year award combined with the Ballon d'Or to create the FIFA Ballon d'Or in a six-year partnership.[3] FIFA presided over the FIFA Ballon d'Or after agreeing to pay £13million for the merge of the two major player awards with France Football. The six editions of the FIFA Ballon d'Or were dominated by Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo, as part of their ongoing rivalry. In 2016, the Ballon d’Or again lost its "FIFA" tag and would be voted for exclusively by journalists, while the FIFA World Player of the Year award – which ran from 1991 to 2009 – was resurrected, this time as The Best FIFA Men's Player.[4]
According to reports, FIFA's decision not to renew the deal was made in order to improve the organization's strained relationship with England's FA. This was based on the fact the annual ceremony was held in Zürich – and new FIFA president Gianni Infantino wanted to move the next one to London.[citation needed]
The trophy was designed by Croatian artist Ana Barbić Katičić.[5]
Criteria and voting
The selection criteria for the players of the year are sporting performance, as well as general conduct on and off the pitch.
The votes are decided by media representatives, national team coaches, and national team captains. In October 2016, it was announced that the general public would also be allowed to vote. Each group has 25% of the overall vote.[6]
Winners
| Year | Rank | Player | Team | Votes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 1st |  Cristiano Ronaldo
|
 Real Madrid
|
34.54% |
| 2nd | Lionel Messi
|
Barcelona
|
26.42% | |
| 3rd |  Antoine Griezmann
|
Atlético Madrid
|
7.53% | |
| 2017 | 1st | Cristiano Ronaldo
|
Real Madrid
|
43.16% |
| 2nd | Lionel Messi
|
Barcelona
|
19.25% | |
| 3rd |  Neymar[note 1]
|
Paris Saint-Germain
|
6.97% | |
| 2018 | 1st |  Luka Modrić
|
Real Madrid
|
29.05% |
| 2nd | Cristiano Ronaldo[note 2]
|
 Juventus
|
19.08% | |
| 3rd |  Mohamed Salah
|
 Liverpool
|
11.23% | |
| 2019 | 1st | Lionel Messi
|
Barcelona
|
46 |
| 2nd |  Virgil van Dijk
|
Liverpool
|
38 | |
| 3rd | Cristiano Ronaldo
|
Juventus
|
36 | |
| 2020 | 1st |  Robert Lewandowski
|
 Bayern Munich
|
52 |
| 2nd | Cristiano Ronaldo
|
Juventus
|
38 | |
| 3rd | Lionel Messi
|
Barcelona
|
35 | |
| 2021 | 1st | Robert Lewandowski
|
Bayern Munich
|
48 |
| 2nd | Lionel Messi[note 3]
|
Paris Saint-Germain
|
44 | |
| 3rd | Mohamed Salah
|
Liverpool
|
39 | |
| 2022 | 1st | Lionel Messi
|
Paris Saint-Germain
|
52 |
| 2nd | Kylian Mbappé
|
Paris Saint-Germain
|
44 | |
| 3rd | Karim Benzema
|
Real Madrid
|
34 | |
| 2023 | 1st | Lionel Messi[note 4]
|
 Inter Miami
|
48[note 5] |
| 2nd |  Erling Haaland
|
Manchester City
|
48 | |
| 3rd | Kylian Mbappé
|
Paris Saint-Germain
|
35 | |
Wins by player
| Player | Winner | Runner-up | Third place |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lionel Messi
|
3 (2019, 2022, 2023) | 3 (2016, 2017, 2021) | 1 (2020) |
| Cristiano Ronaldo
|
2 (2016, 2017) | 2 (2018, 2020) | 1 (2019) |
| Robert Lewandowski
|
2 (2020, 2021) | — | — |
| Luka Modrić
|
1 (2018) | — | — |
| Kylian Mbappé
|
— | 1 (2022) | 1 (2023) |
| Virgil van Dijk
|
— | 1 (2019) | — |
| Erling Haaland
|
— | 1 (2023) | — |
| Mohamed Salah
|
— | — | 2 (2018, 2021) |
| Antoine Griezmann
|
— | — | 1 (2016) |
| Neymar
|
— | — | 1 (2017) |
| Karim Benzema
|
— | — | 1 (2022) |
Wins by country
| Country | Players | Total |
|---|---|---|
| Argentina
|
1 | 3 |
| Poland
|
1 | 2 |
| Portugal
|
1 | 2 |
| Croatia
|
1 | 1 |
Wins by club
| Club | Players | Total |
|---|---|---|
| Real Madrid
|
2 | 3 |
| Bayern Munich
|
1 | 2 |
| Barcelona
|
1 | 1 |
| Paris Saint Germain
|
1 | 1 |
| Inter Miami
|
1 | 1 |
FIFA Player of the Year (including predecessors)
| Players | FIFA World Player of the Year (1991–2009) |
FIFA Ballon d'Or (2010–2015) |
The Best FIFA Men's Player (2016–present) |
Total[7] |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lionel Messi
|
1 | 4 | 3 | 8 |
| Cristiano Ronaldo
|
1 | 2 | 2 | 5 |
| Ronaldo
|
3 | — | — | 3 |
| Zinedine Zidane
|
3 | — | — | 3 |
| Ronaldinho
|
2 | — | — | 2 |
| Robert Lewandowski
|
— | — | 2 | 2 |
| Lothar Matthäus
|
1 | — | — | 1 |
| Marco van Basten
|
1 | — | — | 1 |
| Roberto Baggio
|
1 | — | — | 1 |
| Romário
|
1 | — | — | 1 |
 George Weah
|
1 | — | — | 1 |
| Rivaldo
|
1 | — | — | 1 |
| Luís Figo
|
1 | — | — | 1 |
| Fabio Cannavaro
|
1 | — | — | 1 |
| Kaká
|
1 | — | — | 1 |
| Luka Modrić
|
— | — | 1 | 1 |
See also
Notes
- ^ Neymar was signed by Paris Saint-Germain from Barcelona midway through 2017.
- ^ Cristiano Ronaldo was signed by Juventus from Real Madrid midway through 2018.
- ^ Lionel Messi was signed by Paris Saint-Germain from Barcelona midway through 2021.
- ^ Lionel Messi was signed by Inter Miami from Paris Saint-Germain midway through 2023.
- ^ As per the Rules of Allocation (art. 12), Lionel Messi (Argentina) won the Award on the basis of the votes cast by the men's national-team captains.
References
- ^ "The birth of The Best FIFA Football Awards". FIFA.com. Archived from the original on 5 November 2016. Retrieved 24 October 2016.
- ^ "Ballon d'Or and Best FIFA Men's Player awards explained". Sky Sports. 12 December 2016. Archived from the original on 16 December 2016. Retrieved 2 January 2016.
- ^ "When are The Best FIFA Football Awards 2016?". Daily Mirror. 8 January 2017. Archived from the original on 17 August 2017. Retrieved 9 June 2017.
- ^ Lewis, Rhett (9 August 2022). "The Best FIFA Men's Player: Who Are The Best Footballers". History Of Soccer. Archived from the original on 11 August 2022. Retrieved 11 August 2022.
- ^ I. Ra (27 September 2018). "Hrvatica dizajnirala FIFA trofej: "Uvijek ću pamtiti tren kad ga je Luka digao"". Index.hr (in Croatian). Archived from the original on 23 March 2024. Retrieved 16 March 2020.
- ^ "The fans take centre stage". FIFA.com. 31 October 2016. Archived from the original on 31 October 2016. Retrieved 31 October 2016.
- ^ "The Best FIFA Football Awards in stats". FIFA. 15 January 2024. Retrieved 15 March 2024.
Lionel Messi has seized FIFA's top men's individual award eight times – three more than second-placed Cristiano Ronaldo