Robert Lewandowski won the FIFA Player of the Year poll for the second time in his career and the second time in a row. He was better than Argentine Lionel Messi and Egyptian Mohamed Salah in the final three editions for 2021.
The FIFA poll is voted on by national team managers and captains, journalists as well as internet users. Each of these groups contributes 25 per cent to the final score. The award has been given since 1991.
The ceremony in Zurich, due to the pandemic, was held without the public and the triumphs were connected remotely.
The 33-year-old Pole was also named to the best men’s team of the year.
?? #TheBest FIFA Men’s Player Award 2021 goes to #RobertLewandowski!
??? Fans, players, coaches and journalists have spoken, naming @lewy_official as #TheBest! pic.twitter.com/21hfIDR3rI
— FIFA World Cup (@FIFAWorldCup) January 17, 2022
The Women’s Player of the Year was Spanish Alexia Putellas of Barcelona and the Coach of the Year in men’s soccer was Germany’s Thomas Tuchel of Chelsea London.
Lewandowski was last season’s German champion with Bayern and the Bundesliga’s top scorer with 41 goals, bettering Gerd Mueller’s famous record and securing himself the Golden Boot – the award for the most successful player in European leagues. He is also impressing us with his efficiency this season, leading the Bundesliga with 23 goals.
However, it was not enough to reach the prestigious “Golden Ball” at the end of November. The France Football poll for 2021 was won by Messi ahead of Lewandowski. The Argentine triumphed with the national team in the South American championship and was the best player of the event.
From 2010 to 2015, “France Football” and FIFA jointly honoured one player with the “FIFA Golden Ball”, but since 2016 the plebiscites for the best footballers are again conducted separately.