Lionel Messi was named Sportsman of the Year by the Laureus World Sports Award in Paris on Sunday as the Argentine superstar collected the accolade for the second time.
Messi was a joint winner alongside Lewis Hamilton in 2020, but this time the Paris Saint-Germain forward took sole honours for leading Argentina to World Cup glory last year.
Messi, 35, won the World Cup for the first time in his glittering career in Qatar, earning the Golden Ball as the tournament’s best player in the process, and on Monday he also collected the Laureus prize for Team of the Year on behalf of the triumphant Argentina squad.
Regarded by many as the greatest footballer in history, Messi joined a select group of athletes to win a Laureus World Sports Award more than once.
But how does the Argentine stack up against the most decorated Laureus Award recipients?
Most Laureus World Sports Award
Roger Federer – 5 (2005–2008, 2018)
Serena Williams – 4 (2003, 2010, 2016, 2018)
Usain Bolt – 4 (2009–2010, 2013, 2017)
Novak Djokovic – 4 (2012, 2015–2016, 2019)
Simone Biles – 3 (2017, 2019-2020)
Tiger Woods – 2 (2000–2001)
Yelena Isinbayeva – 2 (2007, 2009)
Michael Schumacher – 2 (2002, 2004)
Rafael Nadal – 2 (2011, 2021)
Lionel Messi – 2 (2020, 2023)
Tennis superstar Roger Federer leads the way as the only five-time winner of the Laureus World Sports Award. The Swiss great won four in a row between 2005 and 2008 during the height of his dominance, before claiming the award again in 2018 when he sealed his comeback from injury by winning the Australian Open.
Fellow tennis greats Serena Williams and Novak Djokovic are one award back with four apiece, while track and field legend Usain Bolt is also on four following his Olympic and World Championship heroics.
Gymnastics star Simone Bile is the only athlete on three awards. Messi joins four others on two: golf great Tiger Woods, Formula One legend Michael Schumacher, track and field great Yelena Isinbayeva, and tennis star Rafael Nadal.
Remarkably, Messi's great rival Cristiano Ronaldo has never won the award, despite being nominated five times.
Messi was a two-time winner at the 2023 ceremony after Argentina were named team of the year for their Qatar World Cup triumph.
Laureus World Sports Award 2023 winners
Sportsman of the Year - Lionel Messi (football)
Sportswoman of the Year - Shelly Ann Fraser-Pryce (athletics)
Team of the Year - Argentina (football)
Breakthrough of the Year - Carlos Alcaraz (tennis)
Comeback of the Year - Christian Eriksen (football)
Sportsperson of the Year with a Disability - Catherin Debrunner (para athletics)
Action Sportsperson of the Year - Eileen Gu (freestyle skiing)
Sport for Good - Teamup
David Haye record
Total fights: 32
Wins: 28
Wins by KO: 26
Losses: 4
MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League, semi-final result:
Liverpool 4-0 Barcelona
Liverpool win 4-3 on aggregate
Champions Legaue final: June 1, Madrid
Company Profile:
Name: The Protein Bakeshop
Date of start: 2013
Founders: Rashi Chowdhary and Saad Umerani
Based: Dubai
Size, number of employees: 12
Funding/investors: $400,000 (2018)
'Shakuntala Devi'
Starring: Vidya Balan, Sanya Malhotra
Director: Anu Menon
Rating: Three out of five stars
Conflict, drought, famine
Estimates of the number of deaths caused by the famine range from 400,000 to 1 million, according to a document prepared for the UK House of Lords in 2024.
It has been claimed that the policies of the Ethiopian government, which took control after deposing Emperor Haile Selassie in a military-led revolution in 1974, contributed to the scale of the famine.
Dr Miriam Bradley, senior lecturer in humanitarian studies at the University of Manchester, has argued that, by the early 1980s, “several government policies combined to cause, rather than prevent, a famine which lasted from 1983 to 1985. Mengistu’s government imposed Stalinist-model agricultural policies involving forced collectivisation and villagisation [relocation of communities into planned villages].
The West became aware of the catastrophe through a series of BBC News reports by journalist Michael Buerk in October 1984 describing a “biblical famine” and containing graphic images of thousands of people, including children, facing starvation.
Band Aid
Bob Geldof, singer with the Irish rock group The Boomtown Rats, formed Band Aid in response to the horrific images shown in the news broadcasts.
With Midge Ure of the band Ultravox, he wrote the hit charity single Do They Know it’s Christmas in December 1984, featuring a string of high-profile musicians.
Following the single’s success, the idea to stage a rock concert evolved.
Live Aid was a series of simultaneous concerts that took place at Wembley Stadium in London, John F Kennedy Stadium in Philadelphia, the US, and at various other venues across the world.
The combined event was broadcast to an estimated worldwide audience of 1.5 billion.
Company%20Profile
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Tips to stay safe during hot weather
- Stay hydrated: Drink plenty of fluids, especially water. Avoid alcohol and caffeine, which can increase dehydration.
- Seek cool environments: Use air conditioning, fans, or visit community spaces with climate control.
- Limit outdoor activities: Avoid strenuous activity during peak heat. If outside, seek shade and wear a wide-brimmed hat.
- Dress appropriately: Wear lightweight, loose and light-coloured clothing to facilitate heat loss.
- Check on vulnerable people: Regularly check in on elderly neighbours, young children and those with health conditions.
- Home adaptations: Use blinds or curtains to block sunlight, avoid using ovens or stoves, and ventilate living spaces during cooler hours.
- Recognise heat illness: Learn the signs of heat exhaustion and heat stroke (dizziness, confusion, rapid pulse, nausea), and seek medical attention if symptoms occur.
Company Profile
Name: Thndr
Started: 2019
Co-founders: Ahmad Hammouda and Seif Amr
Sector: FinTech
Headquarters: Egypt
UAE base: Hub71, Abu Dhabi
Current number of staff: More than 150
Funds raised: $22 million
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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CRICKET%20WORLD%20CUP%20LEAGUE%202
%3Cp%3EMannofield%2C%20Aberdeen%3Cbr%3E%3Cbr%3EAll%20matches%20start%20at%202pm%20UAE%20time%20and%20will%20be%20broadcast%20on%20icc.tv%3Cbr%3E%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EUAE%20fixtures%3C%2Fstrong%3E%3Cbr%3E%3Cbr%3EWednesday%2C%20Aug%2010%20%E2%80%93%20Scotland%20v%20UAE%3Cbr%3EThursday%2C%20Aug%2011%20-%20UAE%20v%20United%20States%3Cbr%3ESaturday%2C%20Aug%2014%20%E2%80%93%20Scotland%20v%20UAE%3Cbr%3EMonday%2C%20Aug%2015%20%E2%80%93%20UAE%20v%20United%20States%3Cbr%3E%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EUAE%20squad%3C%2Fstrong%3E%3Cbr%3E%3Cbr%3EAhmed%20Raza%20(captain)%2C%20Chirag%20Suri%2C%20Muhammad%20Waseem%2C%20Vriitya%20Aravind%2C%20CP%20Rizwan%2C%20Basil%20Hameed%2C%20Rohan%20Mustafa%2C%20Zawar%20Farid%2C%20Kashif%20Daud%2C%20Karthik%20Meiyappan%2C%20Zahoor%20Khan%2C%20Junaid%20Siddique%2C%20Sabir%20Ali%2C%20Alishan%20Sharafu%3Cbr%3E%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETable%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20(top%20three%20teams%20advance%20directly%20to%20the%202023%20World%20Cup%20Qualifier)%3Cbr%3E%3Cbr%3E1.%20Oman%2036%2021%2013%201%201%2044%3Cbr%3E2.%20Scotland%2024%2016%206%200%202%2034%3Cbr%3E3.%20UAE%2022%2012%208%201%201%2026%3Cbr%3E--%3Cbr%3E4.%20Namibia%2018%209%209%200%200%2018%3Cbr%3E5.%20United%20States%2024%2011%2012%201%200%2023%3Cbr%3E6.%20Nepal%2020%208%2011%201%200%2017%3Cbr%3E7.%20Papua%20New%20Guinea%2020%201%2019%200%200%202%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
FINAL RESULT
Sharjah Wanderers 20 Dubai Tigers 25 (After extra-time)
Wanderers
Tries: Gormley, Penalty
cons: Flaherty
Pens: Flaherty 2
Tigers
Tries: O’Donnell, Gibbons, Kelly
Cons: Caldwell 2
Pens: Caldwell, Cross
Jetour T1 specs
Engine: 2-litre turbocharged
Power: 254hp
Torque: 390Nm
Price: From Dh126,000
Available: Now