Johannesburg – Following a stunning season for playmakers in the football fraternity around the globe, the Fifa Ballon d’Or hosted a glittering ceremony in Paris last month.
The former Barcelona player Lionel Messi walked away with a seventh Ballon d’Or title, beating Robert Lewandowski to the award.
It became a talk of town between Messi and the Bayern Munich striker, as most people assumed Lewandowski was robbed in broad daylight when he finished second after being marked as a heavy favourite to win.
However with the casting of the votes, it was proven that the Paris Saint-Germain striker dominated the ranks after he clinched 613 votes – a thin winning margin to the second-place finisher, Lewandowski who attained 580.
The 34-year-old claimed his seventh accolade, making him the greatest of all time, as he came in a parallel line with soccer legend Pelé.
During his spell at Barcelona last season, he was a top scorer in La Liga, and he also won his very first maiden Copa América title with Argentina this year, which placed the Argentine striker as a potential winner of the Ballon d’Or.
Putellas, was the female who crowned with the prestigious Fifa Ballon d’Or title for the epic 2021 year she had.
She was an integral part of Barcelona’s treble-winning side with 18 goals and 12 assists in the Primera División, scored in the 4-0 Champions League final victory against the WSL champions Chelsea and was named in the tournament’s squad of the season.
The midfielder scooped also Uefa’s Women’s Player of the Year for her outstanding performance.
Putellas edged out her Barcelona teammate Jennifer Hermoso, Chelsea’s Sam Kerr, and Arsenal’s free-scoring striker Vivianne Miedema to lift the trophy.
List of all winners during the 2021 Ballon d’Or awards ceremony:
Kopa trophy (best player under 21) – Barcelona’s Pedri
Best Striker of the Year award – Lewandoski
Yachine Trophy 2021 – PSG’s Gianluigi Donnarumma
Club of the Year award – Chelsea
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