Argentina and Paris Saint Germain veteran forward, Lionel Messi has won himself a unique double, landing individual and team Laureus awards for his exploits and those of his World Cup-winning country.
35-year-old Messi finally landed a first World Cup winners medal in Qatar in December 2022 after a thrilling penalty shootout final win over France — enough to earn him an individual accolade while the seven-time Ballon d’Or winner also accepted the team award at a prestigious Paris ceremony.
The Argentine, who attended the ceremony on Monday with wife Antonela Roccuzzo, previously had won the award jointly with British Formula One champion Lewis Hamilton in 2020.
The accolade saw Messi, who earned a fine and suspension from PSG for making an unauthorised promotional visit to Saudi Arabia, see off competition notably from clubmate Kylian Mbappé, whose World Cup final hattrick was not enough to earn him glory in Qatar.
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