Argentine star Lionel Messi was absent from the list of 30 players nominated for the Ballon d'Or award, which France Football magazine gives annually to the best player in the world.
Messi's absence is a historical event. The Argentine star - who is considered the most awarded award on 7 occasions, most recently last year - has never been absent from the list of candidates since 2006. He has been in the top three list continuously since 2007, except for the 2018 edition.
Messi, 35, was excluded from the list of candidates due to his low level in his first year with Paris Saint-Germain, where he scored only 11 goals in all competitions, and failed to help the team overcome the Champions League final price round.
Here are the nominees for the 2022 Ballon d'Or!
✨#ballondor pic.twitter.com/eodgwNzBwt
— Ballon d'Or #ballondor (@francefootball) August 12, 2022
The list also witnessed the absence of Neymar, the Brazilian star and Messi's colleague in Paris Saint-Germain, while there are two Arab stars, Mohamed Salah and Riyad Mahrez, along with Portuguese star Cristiano Ronaldo, who has won the award 5 times.
The award is scheduled to be awarded on October 17, and Real Madrid's French star Karim Benzema appears to be the biggest candidate to win the award for the first time in its history.
Benzema won the Spanish League, the Champions League and the European Super Cup with Real Madrid, and was the top scorer in the domestic league and the European Champions League, and scored 44 goals in 46 games with his team last season.
The award system was modified starting from the current season, and it became related to the performance of the players during the sports season instead of the Gregorian year that was previously approved.