Barcelona superstar, Lionel Messi has been handed his sixth Ballon d'Or by France Football on Monday night at the Theatre du Chatelet in Paris.
Naijaparry reports that as a result, the Argentine has moved clear of arch-rival, Cristiano Ronaldo's count of five to stand above anyone else.
Lionel Messi from @FCBarcelona is the 2019 Ballon d'Or winner! THAT'S HIS SIXTH ONE! #ballondor pic.twitter.com/dLndTZNeeW
- #BallondOr (@francefootball) December 2, 2019
He also succeeds Luka Modric, who was the first non-Messi/Ronaldo Ballon d'Or winner in a decade last year.
Liverpool defender, Virgil van Dijk had been the favourite for the award, but Messi turned things around to be scoop the prestigious trophy.
Ranked at the 3rd place of the 2019 #ballondor ⤵️@Cristiano @juventusfc pic.twitter.com/4L7ZSvdJtb
- #BallondOr (@francefootball) December 2, 2019
Voici le classement officiel et complet du Ballon d'Or France Football 2019 👉 https://t.co/PAM2nVcgyi pic.twitter.com/mR0DTJ8oKp
- #BallondOr (@francefootball) December 2, 2019
Ranked at the 4th place of the 2019 #ballondor ⤵️
Sadio Mané 🇸🇳@LFC
Live ranking > https://t.co/cSurv8xUiL pic.twitter.com/8U2KZeOux2
- #BallondOr (@francefootball) December 2, 2019
Ronaldo, meanwhile, was not even present on the podium.
It's the first time in 26 years that no Spaniards are in the list of finalists for the award.
Earlier, a 'leaked picture' of the Ballon d'Or results already showed Messi had triumphed.
Messi's latest feat add to the ever-growing list of accolades won by a player widely regarded as the best-ever. He lifted La Liga earlier this year and marked his 700th Barcelona appearance with a goal against Borussia Dortmund last week.
