7th wonder

PARIS, November 30

Argentina’s Lionel Messi won the Ballon d’Or award for the best player in the world for a record-stretching seventh time on Monday, beating Robert Lewandowski and Jorginho to lift soccer’s most prestigious trophy yet again.

The forward added to his 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2015 and 2019 trophies after winning the Copa America for the first time with his country last July.

“It’s incredible to be here again. Two years ago I thought it was the last time. Winning the Copa America was key,” Messi said at Paris’s Theatre du Chatelet.

Messi, who joined Paris St Germain on a free transfer from Barcelona during the close season after finishing as La Liga’s top scorer with the Spanish club, collected 613 points, with Bayern Munich’s Lewandowski, named best striker, getting 580. Jorginho, who won the Champions League with Chelsea and the European championship with Italy, ended up third on 460, ahead of France’s Karim Benzema and Ngolo Kante in fourth and fifth places respectively.

The women’s Ballon d’Or went to Barcelona’s Alexia Putellas. — Reuters

CR7 hits back at rivalry ‘lies’ with Leo

Cristiano Ronaldo has hit back at comments made by Ballon d’Or organiser Pascal Ferre, saying the editor-in-chief of France Football “lied” about his rivalry with Lionel Messi. Ferre told the New York Times on Friday that Manchester United forward’s sole ambition was to retire with more of the awards for the world’s best player than Messi. “Pascal Ferre lied, he used my name to promote himself and to promote the publication he works for,” Ronaldo said in an Instagram post. reuters