Cristiano Ronaldo has been crowned the world’s best player at the inaugural FIFA “The Best” Awards in Zurich – adding another glitzy title to his rapidly growing resume. It was a magnificent year for the Portugal and Real Madrid superstar, winning two prestigious cups — the Champions League with his club and the European Cup with the Portuguese national team.
Ronaldo scored 16 goals in the Champions League, paving the way for Real Madrid to be crown the best in Europe for the 11th time in the club’s history. He also scored nine goals in the European Cup, leveling French legend Michel Platini’s European Cup single tournament goal record. In total, Ronaldo scored more than 50 goals in a single season for the sixth consecutive year, making him a deserved winner both in last month’s Golden Ball award and FIFA’s new “The Best” Award.
By winning 34.54 percent of votes, Ronaldo beat off Barcelona’s Lionel Messi (26.42 percent) and club teammate Antoine Griezmann (7.53 percent). The fact that the top three all play in La Liga shows how dominant the league is technically. A more direct indication would be the final list of the FIFA FIFPro World11— 10 of the 11 were playing for either Real Madrid or Barcelona last season, with the one exception being goalkeeper Manuel Neuer from Bayern Munich.
In other awards, Leicester City’s Claudio Ranieri won the Coach of the Year title in recognition for leading his side to their improbable Premier League triumph. Colombian club Atlético Nacional was awarded The FIFA Fair Play Award for Requesting CONMEBOL to award Chapecoense the 2016 Copa Sudamericana title following the fatal crash of LaMia Flight 2933, while Borussia Dortmund and Liverpool supporters were The FIFA Fan Award winner for their togetherness in the 2015-16 UEFA Europa League matchup, when they combined to sing, “You’ll Never Walk Alone” in memory of the Hillsborough Disaster.
