Messi's award after World Cup heroics at 39: “The verdict is unequivocal” | OneFootball

The International Federation of Football History & Statistics (IFFHS) named Lionel Messi the Best Player of the 2026 World Cup, an award the organization has given since 1991 based on its own performance index and one that, in this edition, the Argentina captain claimed with numbers that left no room for debate.

The IFFHS announcement came on July 19, hours after the match in which Spain defeated Argentina 1-0 in extra time in the final played at New York/New Jersey Stadium. Although Messi was unable to lift a second World Cup, his campaign throughout the tournament had the greatest individual impact as measured by the Federation’s statistical system. He played in all seven of Argentina’s matches, scored 8 goals, provided 4 assists, and averaged a rating of 8.33 per game, according to the official IFFHS statement.

That average was not the result of a single standout performance. Messi was directly involved in at least one goal in each of the seven matches he played before the final, a streak that included a hat-trick against Algeria in the opener, a brace against Austria—which made him the tournament’s all-time leading scorer at that point, with 18 goals—and two assists in the semifinal against England, a match Argentina won 2-1 to reach the final. In total, his 12 direct goal involvements made him the player with the greatest attacking impact in the tournament.

The IFFHS methodology includes weighted match ratings, goals, assists, and impact in knockout rounds. Before the final, Messi’s performance index stood at 8.91, a considerable gap over the runner-up, France’s Kylian Mbappé, on 6.73, according to the IFFHS’s own daily tournament updates. Third place in that index went to England’s Jude Bellingham, with 6.32.

“The verdict is unequivocal,” the IFFHS said in its official statement, emphasizing that the award is determined “by the unquestionable authority of the data” and not by reputation or sentiment. The Germany-based organization highlighted that Messi’s aggregate score across all weighted criteria surpassed that of every other player evaluated in the tournament.

The IFFHS award differs from the Golden Ball presented by FIFA, which in this edition went to Spain’s Rodri, chosen as the tournament’s best player by a jury of journalists and experts. Mbappé, with 10 goals in total—including those he scored in the third-place match, which are not part of the IFFHS calculation for its performance index—won the Golden Boot. Messi received FIFA’s Silver Ball.

The IFFHS recognition also comes in a broader historical context. With 8 goals in this World Cup, Messi finished as the tournament’s second-highest scorer behind Mbappé (10). Over the course of his World Cup career—which spans six tournaments, from 2006 to 2026—the 39-year-old forward has scored 21 goals and is surpassed only by Mbappé himself (22) in World Cup history. Meanwhile, La Pulga is the player with the most assists (13) in World Cups.

The IFFHS also published the best XI of the 2026 World Cup, with Lionel Messi listed as one of the starting forwards. At 39, the Rosario star showed he still has what it takes to be a decisive force in Lionel Scaloni’s team and played in all eight of Argentina’s matches in the tournament held in Canada, the United States, and Mexico.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇪🇸 here.