Lionel Messi wins ‘Player of the Year’ award as Cristiano Ronaldo snubs Event
Megan Rapinoe bags Women's honour
Milan (Italy), Sep 24: Barcelona star striker Lionel Messi won the men's best player while US forward Megan Rapinoe took home the women's award at the Best FIFA Football Awards which took place in a glittering ceremony at Teatro alla Scala, Milan.
Messi, who helped Barcelona win La Liga and reach the semi-finals of the Champions League, won the player of the year award for a sixth time as Juventus' Cristiano Ronaldo and Liverpool's Virgil van Dijk missed out on the top prize late on Monday.
Earlier, the Argentine had won the award in 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012 and 2015.
Rapinoe was rewarded at the FIFA Best awards for leading the US to the women's World Cup title in July. She scored six goals in the tournament, earning her the Golden Boot for the tournament's top scorer and the Golden Ball as the top player.
The Best FIFA Men's Player of the Year Lionel Messi and The Best FIFA Women's Player of the Year Megan Rapinoe were the night’s big winners. | Source: Getty Images
Meanwhile, Jurgen Klopp was awarded with men's coach of the year award. Klopp coached Liverpool to the Champions League title last season, as well as a record-breaking second-place finish in the Premier League. The Reds also currently top this season's table too.
In the women's category, US national team coach Jill Ellis won the top prize after taking her side all the way in the World Cup this summer. Ellis is the only women's coach to win the World Cup twice.
Sari van Veenendaal was named the inaugural best women's goalkeeper, joining her custodian counterpart Alisson who picked up best men''s goalkeeper award.
The Puskas Award for the best goal of the year went to 18-year-old Daniel Zsori for his spectacular 93rd-minute overhead kick for Debrecen against Ferencvaros, just after he came on as a substitute for his Hungarian league debut in February.
The FIFA Fair Play award was taken home by Marcelo Bielsa and the Leeds United squad, after the Argentinean coach and his team ultimately sacrificed promotion for his team to uphold the values of fair play instructing his Leeds United team to allow an equaliser after his side had gone 1-0 up with an opposition player down injured.
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Sameer Ahmed elected President of SKMWA Muscat for 2026–2027
Muscat: Sameer Ahmed, a native of Udupi and currently employed in a private company in Muscat, has been elected President of the South Kanara Muslim Welfare Association (SKMWA), Muscat, for the 2026–2027 term.
The election was conducted during the association’s Annual General Body Meeting held at Al Reef Hotel, Muscat, in the presence of chief guests Adil Shaikh, Monabba, Shareef, and Sahebzada Mehmood.
The newly elected office bearers include Vice Presidents Mohd Arif (Udupi) and Niyaz Mohammed (Mangalore), General Secretary Jaseem Basha (Kundapura), Joint Secretaries Rizwan Ali (Udupi) and Zaheer Hussain (Moodbidri), Treasurer Tajuddin Sheikh (Tonse), Assistant Treasurer Irfan Ahmed (Udyavara), Finance Secretary Mohammed Asif Gafur (Karkala), Assistant Finance Secretary Mohammed Akif Gafoor (Karkala), and Auditor Ashraf Ali (Kaup).
The Core Committee includes Event Coordinators Ansar Katipalla and Adil Moodbidri, and Sports Coordinators Ashpak Basrur and Muneer Ahmed (Sastan).
The programme commenced with a recitation from the Holy Quran by Zaid Asif. The Annual Activity Report for 2025 was presented by Sameer Ahmed, while the financial report was delivered by Mohammed Asif Gafoor and verified by Auditor Ashraf Ali.
Former president Azim was felicitated by Syed Mohiddin Saheb during the event.
The meeting concluded with an address by the newly elected president, followed by a vote of thanks proposed by General Secretary Jaseem Basha. The programme was coordinated by Syed Mohiddin Saheb (Sastan) and Ansar Katipalla.
