The former Barcelona and Paris Saint-Germain player was voted the winner of the award following his impressive performance at the 2022 FIFA World Cup hosted in Qatar. Lionel Messi led his team to win the most lucrative competition for the first time since 1986 when Diego Maradona led them to win the tournament. He has also been impressive for Inter Miami since he arrived at the MLS, leading them to their first-ever trophy in the history of the club.
The breakdown of how coaches of national teams around the world voted for the best player was released on the official website of Ballon d’Or. Messi won the award having 462 votes, he was followed by Manchester City’s striker, Erling Haaland who had 357 votes, and PSG’s Kylian Mbappe came in third place with 270 votes.
