Lionel Messi won his seventh Ballon d’Or title on Monday, and Alexia Ptera won her first Ballon d’Or feminine title.
This is a record victory for Messi. Messi currently has two more titles than his rival Cristiano Ronaldo. Although may be considered a relatively bad year for Messi at the club level, he played an important role in helping Argentina win the Copa America title earlier this year.

He also became the top scorer in the Spanish league, scoring two goals when Barca won the Copa del Rey. Before moving to Paris Saint-Germain in the summer, Barcelona finished third in LaLiga and was eliminated from the Champions League in the first round. “I’m really proud to win the French Soccer Ballon d’Or again,” Messi said. “The seventh victory is great. I would like to thank my family, friends, and all the people who follow me and always support me. Without them, I wouldn’t have been able to achieve it. Probably. “

Messi previously won this award in 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2015 and 2019. Messi won the competition for Robert Lewandowski in Bayern Munich. Polish strikers were widely expected to win last year’s award before being canceled due to a pandemic. In his award-winning speech, Messi said he believed that Lewandowski won the award last year. “You deserve Ballon d’Or. Last year, everyone agreed that you were a big winner,” Messi said. For Aerodactyl, she had a year of dream making.

This 27-year-old is a key player in Barcelona’s triple season, helping the club win the Champions League, the Spanish League and the Spanish Cup. In 2021, Aerodactyl looked like an outstanding player on Barcelona’s great team, and she made an amazing contribution of 37 goals and 27 assists. She defeated Barcelona teammate Jennifer Hermoso in this award.

This is the third distribution. Launched in 2018, Norway’s Ada Hegerberg won the championship, and the following year Megan Rapinoe of the United States became the second winner. Last year’s award ceremony was canceled during the Covid 19 pandemic.

The timing of this season’s awards ceremony, in the midst of a women’s international break, was a critical decision that made it difficult for some candidates to attend. For more news, features and videos, visit CNN.com/sport For example, Australian and Chelsea star Samantha Kerr, who is running for the best player in the women’s soccer award, is likely to be absent from Matildas’s ceremony for the United States in Newcastle on Tuesday.

The list of candidates is edited by French football, after which journalist judges from around the world vote for the winner. That night, Barcelona star Pedri won the Kopa Trophy. The Kopa Trophy is presented to the best male U21 players. However, Lewandowski never finished the night empty-handed and was selected for the new award introduced this year, the “Striker of the Year”. Italian goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnaruma won the Yashin Trophy as the best goalkeeper. European Champion Chelsea became the first club to be selected for the Club of the Year.