Lionel Messi makes shortlist for FIFA Best Award and sparks outrage among fans

Messi was one of 11 nominees for the honour alongside Dani Carvajal, Erling Haaland, Federico Valverde, Florian Wirtz, Jude Bellingham, Kylian Mbappe, Lamine Yamal, Rodri, Toni Kroos and Vinicius Jr.

Of that group, ten were nominated for the Ballon d'Or, where they all finished inside the top 17.

Messi was the only one who was not shortlisted for football's most prestigious individual honour, marking the first time he had not been nominated since 2005.

It is why several eyebrows have been raised on social media by fans.

One fan posted on X: "What exactly did Messi do to make this list??"

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Another wrote: "Wtf is Messi doing there?"

One supporter said: "That is crazy, love Messi but this season he really has no business there."

Another account added: "This can't be possible."

According to FIFA, the nominees were chosen on how they performed from August 21 last year to August 10 this year.

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Messi featured in just 14 games across all competitions for Inter Miami in 2023, with six of those coming in Major League Soccer (MLS).

However, the 37-year-old did manage to help Miami win their first piece of silverware in the Leagues Cup, where he scored 10 goals in the space of seven games.

In 2024, Messi was significantly more active for Miami.

The Argentinian played in 19 MLS games where he registered 20 goals and 10 assists, but lost out to former Premier League star Christian Benteke in the race for the golden boot.

Messi did manage to lead Miami to the Supporters' Shield, which is awarded to the team with the best record in the regular season.

Miami's 74 points set a new league record, but they failed to capitalise on it in the postseason as Messi's side was knocked out in the first round of the playoffs by Atlanta United.

The postseason failure led to coach Gerardo 'Tata' Martino's exit from the club as Javier Mascherano, one of Messi's former Barcelona teammates, was appointed as his successor.

Messi was significantly more successful at international level as he skippered Argentina to Copa America glory in July.

The 37-year-old started five of Argentina's six games in the tournament but was moved to tears when he was forced off in the second half of the final against Colombia.

Luckily for Messi, Lautaro Martinez - who finished seventh in the Ballon d'Or rankings but was not nominated for the Best FIFA Men's Player Award - scored a winner in extra time to hand Argentina a 1-0 victory.

The voting process for the Best FIFA Men's Player Award will be weighted equally between fans, the captains and coaches of all men's national teams as well as selected media representatives.

Should Messi win the award, it would mark the third-straight year he had done so, having also won it in 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2015 and 2019.