Lionel Messi looks forward to lift his eighth Ballon d’Or later in October after the winners for both the male and female awards for 2023 were leaked.
It has been reported that Messi has been notified of his victory ahead of the October 30 ceremony taking place in Paris.
This comes after the 36-year-old achieved glory with Argentina after leading them to World Cup triumph in Qatar last year, Vanguard reports.
The former Barcelona and Paris Saint-Germain star then joined Inter Miami in July and immediately set MLS abuzz with a string of spectacular performances.
Messi’s imminent triumph will see the Ballon d’Or awarded to someone who plays outside of Europe for the first time in history and take him three clear of eternal rival Cristiano Ronaldo, Pmnewsnigeria.com reports.
The 36-year-old faced fierce competition from Manchester City striker Erling Haaland and ex-PSG team-mate Kylian Mbappe but is set to come out on top thanks to his heroics in Qatar.
According to Spanish media outlet SPORT, Messi will be awarded his 8th Ballon d’Or ahead of Manchester City’s Erling Haaland, who helped his club to a treble, and Kylian Mbappe who was the World Cup’s Golden Boot winner.
Mbappe guided France to the final in Qatar, where he scored a hat-trick against Argentina, only to lose the trophy on penalties.
In addition to Messi’s triumph, the report adds that Barcelona midfielder Aitana Bonmati has won her first-ever Ballon d’Or Feminin prize and will be presented as the winner at the Chatelet Theater, having won the Women’s World Cup with Spain after beating England in August’s dramatic final.
As was the case with Messi, Bonmati also won the Golden Ball at this year’s Women’s World Cup, and the 25-year-old also clinched Champions League and Primera Division glory with La Blaugrana.
