The Best Fifa awards LIVE: Lionel Messi, Karim Benzema, and Kylian Mbappe nominated for top men’s prize
Who will triumph at Fifa’s annual awards ceremony?
The seventh annual Fifa Best Awards takes place this evening with a host of football’s biggest stars, including the likes of Lionel Messi and Kylian Mbappe, nominated for the top prizes. Three finalists in each category have been confirmed ahead of the ceremony in Paris.
France’s Karim Benzema, along with Messi and Mbappe has been nominated for the Best Fifa Men’s Player award whilst England’s Beth Mead is competing against the USA’s Alex Morgan and 2021 winner Alexia Putellas for the Fifa Best Women’s Player award. Elsewhere, England boss Sarina Wiegman is nominated for Fifa Best Women’s Coach and the Puskas Award will be handed out to the male or female judged to have scored the “most beautiful” goal of the calendar year.
This year saw major tournaments in both men’s and women’s football meaning men’s World Cup winners Argentina and England’s Euro 2022-winning Lionesses are both in line for a trophy-laden night. The great and the good will all be gathered in Paris for a ceremony that should celebrate a fantastic year of football.
Follow along with out live blog as the Fifa Best award winners are announced:
Why Karim Benzema should win the Best Men’s Player award
This should have been Karim Benzema’s year. 2022 was a defining year for the Frenchman in which he repeatedly showcased his greatness on the way to his first ever Ballon d’Or as well as a fifth Champions League and a fifth La Liga title.
Benzema almost single-handedly took Real Madrid back to the pinnacle of Europe, scoring key goals in contests thought lost as Madrid won a record-extending 14th Champions League.
He was also the leading goalscorer domestically with 27 goals as he and his team mates won the league by 13 points.
An injury to his left thigh that shattered his 2022 World Cup dream and he didn’t play a part in France’s run to the final despite having been named in Didier Deschamps’ squad
Prior to the World Cup, Benzema would have been a shoe-in to add this award to his impressive collection but missing the World Cup will have hurt his chances.
Why Kylian Mbappe should win the Best Men’s Player award
Kylian Mbappe was probably the favourite to win this award before the World Cup started and his performances during that tournament did him no harm on a personal level but France lost to Argentina in the final which could put Lionel Messi ahead of him in the rankings.
Mbappe became just the second man to score a hat-trick in a World Cup final and those three goals against Argentina ensured the 24-year-old won the Golden Boot for what little consolation that would have been.
He also won the Ligue 1 Golden Boot as PSG won the title with a healthy 15-point gap to rivals Marseille. This season Mbappe has banged in 29 goals and added seven assists in his 29 games in all competitions for the French champions.
Why Lionel Messi should win the Best Men’s Player award
Lionel Messi ended his year in the perfect way thanks to the 2022 World Cup. He was successful at club level throughout the year with PSG his best moments came in Qatar.
He won the Golden Ball as the best player at the tournament and became the third Argentine to lift the World Cup trophy having defeated PSG teammate - and fellow nominee - Kylian Mbappe’s France in the final.
Messi’s success throughout November and December in Qatar makes him the favourite to lift the Best Men’s Player award later on and if he gets his hands on the top prize this evening, he will join Cristiano Ronaldo and Robert Lewandowski as the only platers to have won it twice.
Who will win The Best Fifa Awards? Predictions as Messi and Mbappe go head to head
The Best Fifa Football Awards take place tonight in a glamorous Paris ceremony inexplicably hosted by Jermaine Jenas.
There are several awards on offer for footballing exploits in 2022. The best men’s and women’s players are the marquee prizes, while the best goalkeepers are also recognised and get their own category. There are awards for the best coaches from the men’s and women’s games, and the Puskas Award celebrates the year’s outstanding goal, before the men’s and women’s world XIs are announced.
Finally there is the Fifa Fair Play Award and the Fan Award. The latter has three nominees: Argentina’s fans for their passionate support at the World Cup; Japanese spectators who were hailed for cleaning up stadiums after their matches; and a man called Abdullah Alsulmi who spent 55 days walking from Jeddah to Doha, across the Arabian desert, to watch Saudi Arabia play in Qatar.
Who will win The Best Fifa Awards? Predictions as Messi and Mbappe go head to head
Alexia Putellas is up against Beth Mead and Alex Morgan for the main women’s award
Tonight’s hosts
The awards ceremony will be hosted by English duo Samantha Johnson and Jermaine Jenas.
Johnson was part of FIFA’s coverage of the World Cup while former Tottenham and Newcastle midfielder Jenas is a regular pundit and co-commentator across a number of channels in the UK.
Previous Best Women’s Player winners
Unlike the men’s top prize, no female footballer has won Fifa Best Women’s Player more than once. Spain’s Alexia Putellas could change that this evening as she is nominated alongside Beth Mead (England) and Alex Morgan (USA).
Lucy Bronze took this trophy in 2020 and after inspiring England to victory at Euro 2022 could Beth Mead join her fellow Lioness in winning the award?
Here are the previous winners:
2016 - Carli Lloyd
2017 - Lieke Martens
2018 - Marta
2019 - Megan Rapinoe
2020 - Lucy Bronze
2021 - Alexia Putellas
Previous Best Men’s Player winners
The 2022 ceremony is the seventh edition of The Best FIFA awards after they were introduced in 2016. Only four male players have won the Fifa Best Men’s Player, Cristiano Ronaldo (x2), Luka Modric, Lionel Messi and Robert Lewandowski (x2).
Here’s the full list of previous winners:
2016 - Cristiano Ronaldo
2017 - Cristiano Ronaldo
2018 - Luka Modric
2019 - Lionel Messi
2020 - Robert Lewandowski
2021 - Robert Lewandowski
Should Lionel Messi win the award again tonight he will join Ronaldo and Lewandowksi as the men to win it multiple times but if he loses then there will be a new name added to the list, either Karim Benzema or Kylian Mbappe.
Final nominees for the Puskas Award
- Marcin Oleksy (Poland): Warta Poznań v. Stal Rzeszów [PZU Amp Futbol Ekstraklasa] (6 November 2022)
- Dimitri Payet (France): Olympique de Marseille v. PAOK Thessaloniki [UEFA Europa Conference League] (7 April 2022)
- Richarlison (Brazil): Brazil v. Serbia [FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022] (24 November 2022)
Who has been nominated for Fifa Best Women’s Goalkeeper?
- Ann-Katrin Berger (Germany/Chelsea)
- Mary Earps (England/Manchester United)
- Christiane Endler (Chile/Lyon)
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