Argentine football superstar Lionel Messi made history after receiving his 8th Ballon d’Or in an illustrious ceremony in France, a record for a player in the 67 years of the competition.
Messi, 36, who joined the US Major League Soccer (MLS) competition after signing a lucrative contract with Inter Miami, now leads his long-term football rival, Portuguese Ronaldo by 3 three Golden Balls (Ballon d’Or).
The Argentinian helped his country win the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.
In 2023, the Argentinian signed a two-and-a-half-year contract at Inter Miami worth $12 million, bringing him up to the end of 2025, with a reported option to extend for another 12 months.
Messi will also reportedly receive a revenue share of subscriptions to MLS Season Pass on Apple TV+ which saw a massive 1,690% growth in sign-ups the day Messi first played for his new team Inter Miami, according to data from analytics companies.
Erling Haaland (Norway and Manchester City), and Kylian Mbappe (France and PSG) took second and third places, respectively.
