Lionel Messi wins the men’s Ballon d’Or award for a record-extending seventh time at a ceremony in Paris. He won the Ballon d’Or for the last time in 2019 before the awards were cancelled due to the pandemic. Apart from that, he has won this award in 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, and 2015.
Last season, the 34-year-old scored 38 goals in 48 games for Barcelona, winning the Copa del Rey before captaining Argentina to Copa America glory in July. That was his first major international title in his career. Lionel Messi had spent his career entirely with Barcelona prior to his tearful departure from the Camp Nou in August and moved to Paris Saint-Germain. Messi has only played 11 games for PSG this season, scoring four goals, but he was rewarded more than anything for his consistent brilliance over the years.
He has now won the Ballon d’Or twice as many times as his old rival Cristiano Ronaldo; the pair have won 12 of the last 13 editions, with the exception of 2018, when Luka Modric took the prize. In the voting by a jury of journalists from around the world, prolific Bayern Munich striker Robert Lewandowski finished second and Chelsea and Italy midfielder Jorginho finished third. Meanwhile, Ronaldo finished sixth.
Alexia Putellas grabs the women’s award for the third time
When he scored in the final minute of the game, the 33-year-old Lewandowski set a new single-season. Scoring record for the Bundesliga with 41 goals, one more than, late Germany great Gerd Müller. From February to September, Lewandowski scored in 19 consecutive games in all competitions for Bayern. Narrowly missing out on equaling the Bundesliga record of 16 games in a row. In total, he has 25 goals in 20 games for Bayern this season. His 11 goals in 12 games for Poland this year brought his international tally to 74 in 128 games, just six short of Messi’s.
Alexia Putellas grabs the women’s award for the third time after an outstanding season with Barcelona and Spain. Previous winners of the women’s award include Ada Hegerberg of Norway in 2018. Megan Rapinoe of the United States in 2019.
Putellas finished with 186 points, far ahead of club and country teammate Jenni Hermoso’s 84. Hermoso scored 31 goals to lead the Spanish first division scoring charts for the third year in a row. Hermoso tied Chelsea’s Fran Kirby for the most goals in the Champions League with six. Sam Kerr, a Chelsea and Australia striker finished third in the voting after scoring 21 goals in the English Women’s Super League and six for Australia at the Tokyo Olympics. Kerr’s excellent form has continued this season, with 13 goals in 12 games.