Lionel Messi has admitted that his latest Ballon d’Or triumph could be his last having won the 2022 FIFA World Cup last year.
Speaking to L’Equipe, the Inter Miami superstar revealed that winning soccer’s biggest individual prize has never been a priority for him, though admitted that his eighth honor could be his last.
Messi beat out the likes of Erling Haaland and Kylian Mbappe for this year’s award, with the forward’s success in Qatar last winter the main reason why the 36-year-old won the Ballon d’Or.
Yet Messi has now admitted that this year’s prize could be his last, with the sporting legend unlikely to play again in Europe having moved to MLS this summer.
Messi said: “Winning the Ballon d’Or was never been a priority for me and even less so now after everything that I have accomplished in my career and compared to all of the other moments that I have experienced in my life.
“I think it is my last Ballon d’Or and I am happy to have achieved everything that I have achieved and to be the only player to have won eight Ballon d’Or,”
Messi’s Ballon d’Or record will never be beaten
Eight Ballon d’Or’s is nothing short of incredible from an individual player, yet Messi just isn’t your normal superstar, as we are aware.
The Inter Miami captain is easily the best player to ever player the game, and Messi’s success in the Ballon d’Or over the last 15 years is a testament to that greatness.
It will be impossible for another player to match what the forward has managed in his career, and for many, there will not be another Messi ever in the sport of soccer.