Lionel Messi wins Ballon d'Or

Paris St-Germain and Argentina forward Lionel Messi won the Ballon d'Or - awarded to the best footballer of the year - for a record seventh time.

Messi, 34, helped his country win the Copa America, his first international honour, and has scored 40 goals in 2021 - 28 for Barcelona, four for Paris St-Germain and eight for Argentina.

Bayern Munich and Poland striker Robert Lewandowski came second, Chelsea and Italy midfielder Jorginho was third and Real Madrid's French striker Karim Benzema finished fourth.

The Ballon d'Or is voted for by 180 journalists from around the world, although there was no award in 2020 because of the coronavirus pandemic.

Either Messi or Cristiano Ronaldo (five wins) collected the award every year from 2008 to 2019, apart from in 2018 when Croatia midfielder Luka Modric won it.

Messi had already won the trophy more times than any other player and his seventh success comes after wins in 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2015 and 2019.

It's incredible to be here again," he said at the ceremony, held at Paris's Theatre du Chatelet.

Two years ago I thought it was the last time. People were starting to ask me when I was going to retire but now I'm here in Paris and very happy.

"It's a special year for me with this Copa America title. It meant a lot to win [1-0 against Brazil in the final] at the Maracana stadium and I was so happy to celebrate with the people from Argentina.

I don't know if it's the best year of my life - I've had a long career - but it was a special one with the title with Argentina after the tough times and the criticism."

Messi also had warm words for the runner-up, 33-year-old Poland captain Lewandowski.

I wanted to say to Robert that it was an honour to go up against him," said Messi. "He deserved to win it last year."

Lewandowski scored 53 goals in all competitions in 2021 for Bayern and was awarded the Striker of the Year prize, a new award that was only announced hours before the ceremony began.

Paris St-Germain's Gianluigi Donnarumma, who helped Italy win Euro 2020, won the Yashin Trophy for best goalkeeper, while Champions League winners Chelsea were named Club of the Year.

Barcelona midfielder Pedri, 19, won the Kopa Trophy for the best player aged under 21, with England internationals Jude Bellingham, Mason Greenwood and Bukayo Saka coming second, fifth and sixth respectively.

Fourteen of the 30 players shortlisted for the Ballon d'Or currently play in the Premier League.

Chelsea had five players represented, with third-placed Jorginho joined by N'Golo Kante in fifth, Romelu Lukaku in 12th, Mason Mount in 19th and Cesar Azpilicueta, who tied for 29th.

Premier League champions Manchester City had the same number as Kevin de Bruyne came eighth, Raheem Sterling 15th, Riyad Mahrez 20th, Phil Foden 25th and Ruben Dias 26th.

Manchester United pair Ronaldo and Bruno Fernandes were sixth and tied for 21st respectively, Liverpool's Mohamed Salah was seventh and Tottenham's Harry Kane 23rd.

Ballon d'Or results

Lionel Messi (Paris St-Germain/Argentina, forward)

Robert Lewandowski (Bayern Munich/Poland, forward)

Jorginho (Chelsea/Italy, midfielder)

Karim Benzema (Real Madrid/France, forward)

N'Golo Kante (Chelsea/France, midfielder)

Cristiano Ronaldo (Manchester United/Portugal, forward)

Mohamed Salah (Liverpool/Egypt, forward)

Kevin de Bruyne (Manchester City/Belgium, midfielder)

Kylian Mbappe (Paris St-Germain/France, forward)

Gianluigi Donnarumma (Paris St-Germain/Italy, goalkeeper)

UK-Ghana Trade & Investment Summit: Trade Resource Centre to help businesses maximise UK-Ghana trade opportunities

In a significant boost to UK-Ghana trade and investment relations, the UK-Ghana Chamber of Commerce (UKGCC), in partnership with the UK-Ghana Jobs and Economic Transformation (JET) Programme, has launched the UK-Ghana Trade Resource Centre, a practical market-access platform designed to help businesses identify opportunities, navigate export requirements and build commercial partnerships between Ghana and the United Kingdom. The UK and Ghana enjoy strong trade relations, with total bilateral trade reaching approximately £1.6 billion in the year to Q1 2026. Yet, despite this progress, significant untapped opportunities remain for businesses in both countries. The Trade Resource Centre has been established to help bridge information gaps, connect businesses with the right partners, and support firms to take greater advantage of opportunities under the UK-Ghana Trade Partnership Agreement. The launch formed one of the major outcomes of the UK-Ghana Trade & Investment Summit 2026,...

NESCAFÉ Launches Real Vibes Text & Win Promo to Reward Coffee Consumers Across Ghana

NESCAFÉ has launched the Real Vibes Text & Win Promo, an exciting consumer promotion designed to reward loyal coffee lovers and bring the brand’s My Coffee, My Vibe experience even closer to consumers across the country. Running from September to December, the promotion gives consumers the opportunity to enjoy their favourite NESCAFÉ coffee while standing a chance to win exciting prizes, including phones, motorcycles, airtime and the ultimate grand prize—an electric SUV. Speaking at the launch, Lily Ntim, Category Development Manager for NESCAFÉ, said the promotion reflects NESCAFÉ’s commitment to creating, rewarding and memorable experiences for consumers. “Today, we are excited to introduce the NESCAFÉ Real Vibes Text & Win Promo, a campaign designed to bring the My Coffee, My Vibe experience even closer to our consumers,” she said. She added that the campaign is not only about prizes, but also about celebrating the everyday moments consumers enjoy with their coffee. “T...

Ghana Home Loans

With interest rates declining, a more liquid environment and a macroeconomic stability, mortgage financing is expected to see an ease of credit. And Ghana Home Loans being a leader in this industry is expected to lead the way. Ghana Home Loans (GHL), a leader in home mortgage, continues to be the frontier in fulfilling dreams of many Ghanaians in homeownership. Since starting business in 2006, it has also provided many existing homeowners with Equity Release mortgages to support their businesses, pay educational fees, improve their properties, or simply pursue other personal hobbies and interests. Ghana Home Loans is a mortgage finance institution which operates under Bank of Ghana’s supervision as a non-bank financial institution. At present, the Company remains the only such institution that focuses exclusively on the provision of mortgage product. Through the Home Completion mortgage and Home Construction mortgage products, Ghana Home Loans has enabled many qualified applican...

Kofi Ahovi

Search This Blog