Lionel Messi was recently awarded his eighth Ballon d’or award, extending his own record for the most trophies ever collected. Many expected Manchester City and Norway striker Erling Haaland to win the award, after breaking the Premier League record for the most goals in one season in his first year.
The Norwegian then went on to lift the treble consisting of the Premier League, Champions League and FA Cup while finishing as the top scorer in domestic as well as European football. Even then, it wasn’t enough to surpass the World Cup winning captain in terms of votes.
Ballon d’or voting list revealed: Messi wins over Haaland by 105 votes
Lionel Messi received 462 points in total, while Erling Haaland received 357 votes for all his accomplishments. As a result, the 23-year-old finished second and was awarded the Gerd Muller Award for being the best striker this past year.
The Argentine acknowledged Haaland in his speech, after his remarkable campaign, marking an end to the greatest career European football has ever seen.
Behind Erling Haaland and Messi, Kylian Mbappe finished in third place with 270 points while Manchester City midfielder Kevin De Bruyne finished 4th with 100 points.
Voting in terms of countries remained a binary affair with most choosing either of Messi or Haaland. Portugal remained the anomaly, however, choosing Bernardo Silva for their pick to win the award over both of the top two.
