Lionel Messi, Kylian Mbappe, and Erling Haaland are among the athletes nominated for FIFA The Best award.
Declan Rice, a top player for Arsenal, is one of several elite athletes from around the world who have been nominated for FIFA The Best award. The £105 million transfer of the England international to the Emirates Stadium was completed this summer after he had assisted West Ham in capturing the Europa Conference League trophy the previous year.
There are 12 contenders for the title of best male player of 2023, including Rice, who plays for six Premier League teams. Manchester City’s treble-winning players Erling Haaland, Kevin De Bruyne, Rodri, Julian Alvarez, and Bernardo Silva are all nominated, along with former captain Ilkay Gundogan.
Awarded nominations are Victor Osimhen and Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, who guided Napoli to the Serie A championship. Another unexpected signing following Inter Milan’s march to the Champions League final is Marcelo Brozovic. Lionel Messi, a former PSG colleague of Kylian Mbappe, has also been nominated for the trophy, which he hopes to win a record third time.
The Ballon d’Or, which nominated 30 players earlier this month, including Jude Bellingham, Mohamed Salah, Harry Kane, and Martin Odegaard—all of whom aren’t included in The Best—is competed with by FIFA’s official celebration, The Best. Many people would have anticipated that players like Odegaard and Bukayo Saka would appear before Rice in the candidates list, but FIFA has taken note of the England international’s European success with the Hammers as he makes the list.
Rice was also selected for the tournament team and was chosen as the 2022–23 Europa Conference League player of the year. After just five games for the Gunners this season, the 24-year-old has already won over the fans at the Emirates Stadium by helping them defeat City to win the FA Community Shield.