Lionel Messi won’t attend the FIFA Best Awards. Here’s why.
Messi is among the favourites for this evening’s Best FIFA Men's Player award, which takes place at a ceremony in London.
The eight-time Ballon d’Or winner was nominated after captaining Argentina to their 2022 World Cup triumph in Qatar, their first victory in the tournament since 1986.
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Messi skippered Argentina to their success while scoring seven goals in his seven appearances and being named Player of the Tournament.
The World Cup win saw the pint-sized Argentinian become the ninth-ever player to have won the European Cup (Champions League), Ballon d'Or and World Cup.
Messi subsequently left Paris Saint-Germain in the summer to join Major League Soccer’s Inter Miami. There he quickly added to his trophy cabinet, netting 10 goals in seven games to fire his new side to the Leagues Cup, their first-ever piece of silverware.
Yet, while Messi is among the most likely players to pick up the Men’s Player award at FIFA’s event this evening, he won’t be there to accept the trophy in person.
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According to journalist Ariel Senosiain on X, formally Twitter, Messi stayed in the US to train with Inter Miami rather than travel to London for the award.
Inter Miami are set to take part in seven friendly matches for their pre-season - six of which will be played on the road.
First, the Herons will take on El Salvador's national team on January 19 before playing FC Dallas at the Cotton Bowl three days later.
They then embark on a huge tour of the Middle East and Asia, which includes two matches in Saudi Arabia against Al-Hilal on January 29 and then a matchup against Cristiano Ronaldo’s Al-Nassr on February 1.
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From there, Inter Miami plays Hong Kong’s national team on February 4 before heading to Japan to play Vissel Kobe.
Finally, the club will return to Miami to take on Messi's boyhood club Newell's Old Boys.
Featured Image Credit: GettyTopics: Football, Lionel Messi, FIFA, Inter Miami