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Inter Miami's Lionel Messi thanked his teammates after winning the 2023 Ballon d'Or trophy in Paris on 30 October.
Messi extended his own record of most Ballon d'Or wins by winning the award for the eighth time — three more than the next best, Cristiano Ronaldo. He beat Erling Haaland (2nd) and Kylian Mbappe (3rd) to the top spot on the podium.
Messi won the award after leading Argentina to their third FIFA World Cup trophy, doing so in Qatar last year. He also won Ligue 1 with Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) last season and has had a fairly productive time at Inter Miami since his free transfer this summer.
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After winning the award at the Theatre de Chatelet, the former Barcelona superstar thanked his teammates, stating that he valued team awards over individual ones. He said (h/t @TheEuropeanLad on X):
"Team trophies are more important than this. Without my team, I can't win these trophies."
Messi helped Inter Miami to win the Leagues Cup earlier this year — the first trophy in the club's history. He also fired them to the final of the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup but didn't play in the 1-0 final defeat to Cincinnati due to a muscle injury.
Lionel Messi's 8th Ballon d'Or award comes after a season of success
Lionel Messi has been on fire for club and country since the start of the 2022-23 season. He won the Golden Ball at the 2022 FIFA World Cup, scoring seven goals and providing three assists in seven games.
Messi also finished last season with an impressive tally of 21 goals and 20 assists in 41 matches for PSG across competitions. At Inter Miami, he has mustered 11 goals and five assists in 14 games so far.
The 36-year-old's fine form for La Albiceleste hasn't stopped after his World Cup triumph. Since the start of 2023, he has scored eight goals and provided an assist in six international games.
After the end of the MLS Season, where Inter Miami finished 14th in the Eastern Conference, Lionel Messi said he was proud of what his team achieved in his first season. His next bit of action is set to come in November, when Argentina face Brazil and Uruguay in the 2026 FIFA World Cup CONMEBOL qualifiers.
