Messi scored seven goals and won the Golden Ball as Argentina became 2022 world champions. Our #1 rests on more than that ending: we prefer his combination of scoring, carrying the ball and creating the next chance. The strongest objection is that our criteria favor exactly the skills he excels at. That is true; this is an editorial choice, not a settled fact. Put finishing longevity first and Cristiano Ronaldo can win; prioritize historical dominance and Pelé can. Who is your #1, and which single criterion makes you reject ours?
Source: FIFA.
Photo: Hossein Zohrevand · CC BY 4.0. Resized and recompressed; same license.
