Messi wins the Laureus World Sports Award

Lionel Messi, captain of Argentina’s World Cup-winning team, was awarded the Laureus Sportsman of the Year on Monday, and sprinting champion Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce won the top women’s prize.

After leading Argentina to victory at the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar, Messi and the Argentine men’s football team were honoured as World Team of the Year.

The 35-year-old forward for Paris St. Germain has won the accolade before, in 2020, when he shared it with Formula One driver Lewis Hamilton.

In the same year, Messi also led his team to victory in the World Sportsman of the Year Awards, becoming the first athlete to win both awards in the same year.

Seeing the names of Schumacher, Woods, Nadal, Federer, Bolt, Hamilton, and Djokovic on the list of previous Laureus Sportsman of the Year Award winners “really sunk in what unbelievable company I’m in and what a unique honour this is,” Messi added.

List of Other Laureus World Sports Award Winners:

• World Sportsman of the Year Award: Lionel Messi
• World Sportswoman of the Year Award: Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce
• World Team of the Year Award: Argentina Men’s Football Team
• World Breakthrough of the Year Award: Carlos Alcaraz
• World Comeback of the Year Award: Christian Eriksen
• World Sportsperson of the Year with a Disability Award: Catherine Debrunner
• World Action Sportsperson of the Year Award: Eileen Gu
• Laureus Sport for Good Award: TeamUp