Ballon d'Or rep: "Don't believe Messi confirmed...Ronaldo out of 30? He didn't"
Vincent Garcia, the editor-in-chief of France Football and the man in charge of the Ballon d'Or award, insists that "rumors should not be believed" when it comes to Lionel Messi winning the 2023 Ballon d'Or.
The Ballon d'Or, which is awarded annually to the world's best player, is currently preparing for the ceremony. France Football, the French soccer publication that organizes the Ballon d'Or, announced the 30 finalists last month on October 7, and will hold a ceremony in Paris on October 30 to announce the winner.
The favorites are Messi and Elling Holland. Kylian Mbappe, Vinicius Junior, and Jude Bellingham are also in the running, but it's hard to compare their performances.
After scoring 36 goals in the Premier League alone last season to lead Manchester City to a triple treble (winning the league, FA Cup, and UEFA Champions League), Holland's goal-scoring prowess in all competitions, totaling 52 goals in all competitions, is certainly worthy of a Ballon d'Or.
However, he'll have a tough time competing with Messi. That's because of Messi's tremendous performance at last year's World Cup, where he completed the final piece of his career puzzle.
At the 2022 World Cup in Qatar last November, Messi captained the Argentine national soccer team and put in a stellar performance in every game, leading his country to its first World Cup title in 36 years. Messi scored seven goals and won his first World Cup title, as well as the Golden Ball, which is awarded to the tournament's MVP. The World Cup is known to have a huge impact on the Ballon d'Or awarded that year, which in 2018 went to Luka Modric, a key midfielder for Croatia's World Cup runners-up in Russia.
Aside from his World Cup victory, Messi is not far behind Holland in terms of individual offense, having scored 21 goals and provided 20 assists in 41 appearances for Paris Saint-Germain (PSG).
Despite the rivalry between Messi and Holland, some media outlets have since claimed that Messi has won the award and that the winner has been leaked. European soccer transfer market expert Fabrizio Romano said: "All the nominees will be confirmed, but Messi will once again be the final winner. The official announcement will be made in Paris this coming Monday night. It will be Messi's historic eighth Ballon d'Or," he said, adding that Messi's Ballon d'Or win is imminent. Spanish outlet Sport also reported the leak, saying, "If the predictions are correct, Messi will win the award for the eighth time."
The editor-in-chief of France Football, the organization responsible for the Ballon d'Or, refuted the leak. 바카라사이트
German outlet Teche published an interview with Garcia on Tuesday, in which he said of the Messi award leak, "There have always been rumors. This is a press play. I understand the desire to announce the winner in advance, but you can't always believe rumors. Very few people know about it," he said, adding that the news was untrue.
When asked who he thought was better between frontrunners Messi and Holland, Garcia replied: "I have to defend the exclusivity of my vote for French football. The awards ceremony will take place on Monday and the details of the voting results will be published on the French football site on November 4," leaving it to the ballot to reveal what he thinks.
In the end, Garcia's comments mean that we won't know which of the two players will win the Ballon d'Or until the ceremony takes place on Nov. 30 local time.
As for the absence of Cristiano Ronaldo from the 30-man Ballon d'Or list for the first time since 2004, Garcia said, "Ronaldo's absence was not a topic of discussion at all in the committee. He didn't do well at the World Cup and he plays in a limited league. But he's still a great player," he said, adding that Ronaldo hasn't done enough to warrant a Ballon d'Or discussion.
With Messi and Holland vying for the award at a Ballon d'Or ceremony without Ronaldo, all eyes will be on Messi to win his eighth Ballon d'Or and Holland to become its new owner.