FIFA launch voting for Best Awards with release of shortlisted names

January 13 –FIFA has unveiled the shortlist for The Best FIFA Football Awards 2022, with Lionel Messi being the stand-out name amongst the men’s nominees.

Surely no-one could have ever been more nailed on for the award than seven time Ballon d’Or winner Messi, who has won the FIFA Best award just once (in 2019) and who led his country imperiously to World Cup victory in Qatar.

His biggest challenge is likely to come from his club teammate at PSG, Kylian Mbappe, who scored a hat-trick for France in the World Cup final against Messi’s Argentina to win the Golden Boot – beating Messi by a goal but coming away with the second place overall.

Nominations in the women’s player category see three of England’s successful European Championship team listed – Beth Mead, Keira Walsh and Leah Williamson – and 10 of the 14 nominees coming from European nations. The US dominance of the women’s game has taken another knock, with only Alex Morgan making the shortlist.

Two expert panels – one for women’s football and one for men’s football – selected the candidates for the players’, goalkeepers’ and coaches’ categories.
Public voting is open on FIFA+ and will run until midnight (CET) on February 3.
FIFA will announce the three finalists in each of the seven categories listed above in early February 2023.

The full list of nominees by category are listed below:

The Best FIFA Women’s Player:

  • Aitana Bonmatí (Spain / FC Barcelona)
  • Debinha (Brazil / North Carolina Courage)
  • Jessie Fleming (Canada / Chelsea FC Women)
  • Ada Hegerberg (Norway / Olympique Lyonnais)
  • Sam Kerr (Australia / Chelsea FC Women)
  • Beth Mead (England / Arsenal WFC)
  • Vivianne Miedema (Netherlands / Arsenal WFC)
  • Alex Morgan (USA / Orlando Pride / San Diego Wave)
  • Lena Oberdorf (Germany / VfL Wolfsburg)
  • Alexandra Popp (Germany / VfL Wolfsburg)
  • Alexia Putellas (Spain / FC Barcelona)
  • Wendie Renard (France / Olympique Lyonnais)
  • Keira Walsh (England / Manchester City WFC / FC Barcelona)
  • Leah Williamson (England / Arsenal WFC)

The Best FIFA Men’s Player:

  • Julián Álvarez (Argentina / Club Atlético River Plate / Manchester City FC)
  • Jude Bellingham (England / BV Borussia 09 Dortmund)
  • Karim Benzema (France / Real Madrid CF)
  • Kevin De Bruyne (Belgium / Manchester City FC)
  • Erling Haaland (Norway / BV Borussia 09 Dortmund / Manchester City FC)
  • Achraf Hakimi (Morocco / Paris Saint-Germain FC)
  • Robert Lewandowski (Poland / FC Bayern München / FC Barcelona)
  • Sadio Mané (Senegal / Liverpool FC / FC Bayern München)
  • Kylian Mbappé (France / Paris Saint-Germain FC )
  • Lionel Messi (Argentina / Paris Saint-Germain FC)
  • Luka Modrić (Croatia / Real Madrid CF)
  • Neymar (Brazil / Paris Saint-Germain FC)
  • Mohamed Salah (Egypt / Liverpool FC)
  • Vinícius Junior (Brazil / Real Madrid CF)

The Best FIFA Women’s Coach:

  • Sonia Bompastor (France / Olympique Lyonnais)
  • Emma Hayes (England / Chelsea FC Women)
  • Bev Priestman (England / Canadian National Team)
  • Pia Sundhage (Sweden / Brazilian National Team)
  • Martina Voss-Tecklenburg (Germany / German National Team)
  • Sarina Wiegman (Netherlands / English National Team)

The Best FIFA Men’s Coach:

  • Carlo Ancelotti (Italy / Real Madrid CF)
  • Didier Deschamps (France / French National Team)
  • Pep Guardiola (Spain / Manchester City FC)
  • Walid Regragui (Morocco / Wydad AC / Moroccan National Team)
  • Lionel Scaloni (Argentina / Argentinian National Team)

The Best FIFA Women’s Goalkeeper:

  • Ann-Katrin Berger (Germany / Chelsea FC Women)
  • Mary Earps (England / Manchester United WFC)
  • Christiane Endler (Chile / Olympique Lyonnais)
  • Merle Frohms (Germany / Eintracht Frankfurt / VfL Wolfsburg)
  • Alyssa Naeher (USA / Chicago Red Stars)
  • Sandra Paños García-Villamil (Spain / FC Barcelona)

The Best FIFA Men’s Goalkeeper:

  • Álisson Becker (Brazil / Liverpool FC)
  • Yassine Bounou (Morocco / Sevilla FC)
  • Thibaut Courtois (Belgium / Real Madrid CF)
  • Ederson (Brazil / Manchester City FC)
  • Emiliano Martínez (Argentina / Aston Villa FC)

The FIFA Puskás Award:

  • Mario Balotelli (https://bit.ly/3GBu1kb) (Italy): Adana Demirspor v. Göztepe Spor Kulübü [Süper Lig] (22 May 2022)
  • Amandine Henry (https://bit.ly/3ZwVXht) (France): FC Barcelona v. Olympique Lyonnais [UEFA Women’s Champions League] (21 May 2022)
  • Théo Hernández (https://bit.ly/3IJ1go9) (France): AC Milan v. Atalanta Bergamasca Calcio, [Serie A] (15 May 2022)
  • Alou Kuol (https://bit.ly/3vZEiS6) (Australia): Iraq U23 v. Australia U23 [AFC U23 Asian Cup] (4 June 2022)
  • Kylian Mbappé (https://bit.ly/3XrJh9Q) (France): Argentina v. France [FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022™] (18 December 2022)
  • Francisco González Metilli (https://bit.ly/3XrotQ4) (Argentina): Club Atlético Central Córdoba v. Club Atlético Rosario Central [Primera División] (1 August 2022)
  • Marcin Oleksy (https://bit.ly/3ZzL26L(Poland): Warta Poznań v. Stal Rzeszów [PZU Amp Futbol Ekstraklasa] (6 November 2022)
  • Salma Paralluelo (https://bit.ly/3GyBgcp) (Spain): FC Barcelona v. Villarreal CF [Liga F] (2 April 2022)
  • Dimitri Payet (https://bit.ly/3iwJ9qS) (France): Olympique de Marseille v. PAOK Thessaloniki FC [UEFA Europa Conference League] (7 April 2022)
  • Richarlison (https://bit.ly/3iyPYIt) (Brazil): Brazil v. Serbia [FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022] (24 November 2022)
  • Alessia Russo (https://bit.ly/3GVC6QX) (England): England v. Sweden [UEFA Women’s EURO 2022] (26 July 2022)

The Best FIFA Fan Award:

  • Abdullah Al Salmi (Saudi Arabia): Abdullah journeyed by foot from his hometown of Jeddah to Qatar, hiking across the Saudi Arabian desert, to support his national team at the FIFA World Cup.
  • Argentinian National Team fans (Argentina): Argentina fans travelled to Qatar in impressive numbers to provide incredible support for their team’s ultimately victorious FIFA World Cup campaign, and millions of fans then welcomed their heroes home to Buenos Aires and across the country.
  • Japanese National Team fans (Japan): Japan fans earned worldwide recognition for their tradition of staying behind to help clean the stadium after World Cup games.

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