The organizers of the Ballon d'Or, France Football, have explained why Lionel Messi is not on the list of 30 candidates.
The 35-year-old, who is the current title holder, was not included in the 30-man list.
This is the first time since 2005. For nearly two decades, La Pulga has dominated the list of Ballon d'Or candidates.
The former Barcelona star struggled during his first season at Paris Saint-Germain. He did not shine even though the Ligue 1 club won the title.
Lionel Messi has scored just 11 goals for PSG, his worst run since the 2005/2006 season.
Copa America Doesn't Count
Emmanuel Bojan, a France Football journalist, is responsible for answering questions on their website about the nominees.
"Lionel Messi, with 15 consecutive appearances since 2006, his seven Ballon d'Or wins, his title holder status, is tough when it comes to the final choice," said Bojan.
the entire player's career, and the new periodicity, which is modeled on the football season and does not last longer during a calendar year. . Well, this is what makes it impossible to include the 2021 Copa America," he continued.
At PSG Not Kicking
In the Copa America, Messi won with Argentina. This is the first time that Messi has taken the first podium at the senior national team level in a major event.
Messi also won two individual titles, namely top scorer with 4 goals (with Luis Diaz) and best player.
The second criterion that made Messi fall was performance at the club.
“And then, it must be admitted that his first season in Paris was a disappointment both in terms of visual impressions and stats.”
Thibaut Courtois (Real Madrid)
Mohamed Salah (Liverpool)
Rafael Leao (AC Milan)
Christopher Nkunku (RB Leipzig)
Joshua Kimmich (Bayern Munich)
Trent Alexander-Arnold (Liverpool)
Vinicius Jr (Real Madrid)
Bernardo Silva (Manchester City)
Luis Diaz (Liverpool)
Robert Lewandowski (Barcelona)
Riyad Mahrez (Manchester City)
Casemiro (Real Madrid)
Heung Min Son (Tottenham)
Fabinho (Liverpool)
Karim Benzema (Real Madrid)
Mike Mainnan (AC Milan)
Harry Kane (Tottenham)
Darwin Nunez (Liverpool)
Phil Foden (Manchester City)
Sadio Mane (Bayern Munich)
Sebastien Haller (Borussia Dortmund)
Luka Modric (Real Madrid)
Antonio Rudiger (Real Madrid)
Cristiano Ronaldo (Manchester United)
Kevin de Bruyne (Manchester City)
Dusan Vlahovic (Juventus)
Virgil van Dijk (Liverpool)
Joao Cancelo (Manchester City)
Erling Haaland (Manchester City)
Kylian Mbappe (PSG)
When Is It Announced?
The Ballon d'Or 2022 ceremony will be held at the Theater du Chatelet, Paris, October 17, 2022. There is no definite information regarding the time the ceremony will start.
Of course, it's not just the Ballon d'Or winner who is eye-catching. France Football also applies other categories, such as the Kopa Trophy (Best Under-21 Player) and Yashin Trophy (Best Goalkeeper).
In the 2021 edition, Messi won the Ballon d'Or, Pedri won the Kopa Trophy, and Gianluigi Donnarumma won the Yashin Trophy.
