The Best: Who Voted for Messi and Who Didn’t
Ah, The Best. An awards show that aims to recognize the best of the best in football. But wait, didn’t we just have one a few months ago? FIFA and the Ballon d’Or, which was considered the most prestigious individual award ceremony in football, went their separate ways in 2016, giving rise to The Best. Unlike the Ballon d’Or, where journalists had the final say, The Best is determined by a combination of fan votes, a panel of journalists, and national team captains and coaches. What’s even better is that all the votes are made public.
The list of votes is quite intriguing, revealing rivalries and alliances among players. For instance, Cristiano Ronaldo has only voted for Lionel Messi once since 2010, placing him second behind Robert Lewandowski in 2020. On the other hand, Messi has voted for Ronaldo twice, placing him third in 2018 and second in 2019.
Despite winning The Best award for the third time on Monday evening, Messi did not attend the ceremony in London to collect the trophy. Instead, he chose to continue his pre-season training with his new Inter Miami teammate Luis Suarez in South Florida. But let’s dive into who voted for Messi and who didn’t, as Messi and FC Barcelona’s Aitana Bonmati took home the headline men’s and women’s awards.
Messi emerged as the top choice among his peers, receiving 677 captain’s points, ahead of Erling Haaland (557) and Kylian Mbappe (282). In this captain’s points system, a first-place vote is worth five points, followed by three points for second place and one point for third place. Notable players like Harry Kane, Virgil van Dijk, Luka Modric, Romelu Lukaku, Mohamed Salah, and Heung-min Son also voted for Messi. Even Italy captain Gianluigi Donnarumma chose Messi over his Paris Saint-Germain teammate Mbappe, which might create tensions in the French capital. Brazil coach Diniz also voted for Messi despite the international rivalry.
Interestingly, Messi received support from unexpected sources as well. China PR captain Xi Wu, Ryan Isaac Mendes from Cape Verde, who led his team to a historic win over Ghana, and Konstantin Vassiljev, who played against Messi in a 5-0 Argentina win over Estonia in 2022, all voted for Messi.
On the other hand, it’s no surprise that Portugal captain Pepe, Ronaldo’s former teammate, did not include Messi in his top three list. Pepe voted for his international teammate Bernardo Silva, followed by Haaland and Victor Osimhen. Austria captain David Alaba, now playing for Real Madrid, also left Messi off his list, despite facing racial abuse on social media for voting for Messi last year over his then-teammate Karim Benzema. Former Manchester United head coach Ralph Rangnick and current Austria coach Julian Nagelsmann also omitted Messi from their lists. Gareth Southgate, the England coach, voted for three Manchester City players: Haaland, Rodri, and Bernardo, leaving out Messi.
Moving on to the US coaches and captains, Lindsey Horan, the captain of the USWNT, did not vote for any of her teammates. She chose Bonmati as her first pick, followed by Chelsea duo Sam Kerr and Lauren James. Christian Pulisic, the USMNT captain, voted for Messi as the winner, with Mbappe and Haaland in second and third place.
Gregg Berhalter, the USMNT coach, selected Rodri as his top choice, followed by Haaland and Messi. Twila Kilgore, the stand-in USWNT head coach, placed her captain Horan in second place between Bonmati and Japan and Manchester United midfielder Hinata Miyazawa.
In terms of England votes, Lauren James was the highest-ranked English player, finishing in sixth place. Ghana captain Boakye Portia voted James as her number one pick, and Chelsea teammate Maren Mjelde placed her in third. Rachel Daly finished closely behind James in seventh place. Keira Walsh and Alex Greenwood also received votes.
Surprisingly, England men’s captain Harry Kane did not receive any votes, despite his outstanding performance for Tottenham Hotspur, where he scored 30 Premier League goals. However, his recent move to Germany has put him in early consideration for next year’s award, especially if England performs well in the upcoming Euro tournament. Another unexpected vote came from Montserrat captain Lyle Taylor, who gave a first-place vote to Declan Rice, possibly due to Rice’s captaincy of West Ham in their Europa Conference League victory.
There were a few unexpected selections in the voting as well. Marcelo Brozovic, who recently joined Al Nassr in the Saudi Pro League, received 17 votes from players and coaches. Portugal coach Roberto Martinez even voted for him as his top choice, ahead of Bernardo Silva. Victor Osimhen receiving as many votes as Rodri was a small surprise, but his contribution to Napoli’s Serie A title win played a significant role. Once again, Ronaldo did not receive any nominations for the award, despite his impressive goal-scoring record for Al Nassr in Saudi Arabia.
In conclusion, The Best awards ceremony brought some interesting voting patterns to light. While Messi received support from his peers and unexpected sources, there were those who chose not to include him in their top three picks. The voting also showcased the preferences of US coaches and captains, as well as the choices made by English players. Overall, The Best provided an exciting glimpse into the opinions and rivalries within the football community.