Lionel Messi: Argentina's striker triumphs over Erling Haaland The year's top male FIFA player Erling Haaland is beaten by Lionel Messi to win men's player of the year; the duo need a vote tie-break since the national team captains made the ultimate choice; the World Cup 2022 performance was not included in the 2023 award; Pep Guardiola, the manager of Manchester City, was named the best men's coach.

After a vote tie-break, Lionel Messi of Inter Miami defeated Erling Haaland of Manchester City to win the men's player of the year award at The Best FIFA Awards 2023. Because the two players were deadlocked on points, the vote was cast by the national team captains, and Messi was chosen by all four of them: Andy Robertson of Scotland, Harry Kane of England, Aaron Ramsey of Wales, and Jonny Evans of Northern Ireland. The most outstanding performance between December 19, 2022, and August 20, 2023, was honored with the 2023 award.

Only Messi's performance in the 2022 World Cup was taken into account for the accolade, he received after leading Argentina to victory in Qatar.

The 36-year-old joined Major League Soccer team Inter Miami after winning the 2023 Leagues Cup, which was a match between MLS and Liga MX teams in Mexico, with 10 goals. The 36-year-old had previously won the Ligue 1 title with Paris Saint-Germain in 2023.

Despite Haaland's victory at Man City, Messi won the title because he scored 30 goals in all competitions between the end of the World Cup and August 20, 2023.

None of the three finalists attended the London awards presentation, and PSG forward Kylian Mbappe came in third in the vote.

Pep Guardiola, the manager of Manchester City, won The Best FIFA Awards 2023 for best men's coach. Guardiola led City to a treble last season, which included victories in the FA Cup, Premier League, and Champions League. The shortlist also included Barcelona's Xavi, Inter Milan manager Simone Inzaghi, former Celtic manager Ange Postecoglou, who is currently managing Tottenham, Luciano Spalletti, who led Napoli to the Serie A championship, and others. Guardiola stated:

"I want to share this trophy and moment with our owners at Manchester City."I want to express my gratitude to all of our players—who have collectively contributed to our club for eight years—on behalf of my backroom crew and myself. "Thanks so much for this incredible journey because they don't know what it means every morning to go there and live with them, winning or losing it doesn't matter - living with them has been incredible."

Six members of Guardiola's City club were included in the men's team of the year: midfielders Bernardo Silva and Kevin De Bruyne, forward Erling Haaland, and defenders John Stones, Kyle Walker, and Ruben Dias. Jude Bellingham, a midfielder for Real Madrid and England, was also there. City goalie Ederson earned the men's best goalkeeper title, although he did not make the squad of the year, with Real Madrid's Thibaut Courtois in goal.