Lionel Messi is 39 years old. He plays in MLS now. And somehow, after three seasons in Miami, he might be getting ready for another Ballon d’Or.
France Football, the organization that hands out the award, basically said this week there’s nothing stopping him. They posted a piece on the Ballon d’Or website under ‘press room’ with a headline asking a question that felt pointed: ‘Can you win the Ballon d’Or without playing for a European club?’
The article even featured a photo of Cristiano Ronaldo, which felt like either a peace offering to his supporters or a troll job. But everyone knows who that question is really about.
Messi has been tearing it up for Argentina at the 2026 World Cup. We’re talking dominant performances at an age when most players are retired or doing commercials. He’s leading a team that could beat Spain in the final. And if Argentina wins, he’s almost certainly getting a third Golden Ball as Player of the Tournament.
No rules against it anymore
France Football laid out the history in their post. The Ballon d’Or started in 1956 as an award for the best European player in a European league. In 1995 they opened it up globally but still required winners to play in Europe. Then in 2007 they dropped that restriction entirely. Since then it’s been “best player in the world, full stop.”
Messi already won his eighth Ballon d’Or in 2023 while technically an MLS player. But there’s context there. The voting period covered his time at Paris Saint-Germain, before he moved to Inter Miami. He hadn’t played a single game in the U.S. yet. The award was really for what he did in Europe and at the 2022 World Cup.
This time would be different. If Messi wins number nine, he’d earn it while playing in pink for Miami. No European club games in the voting window. Just MLS matches and international duty.
The last male player nominated for a Ballon d’Or while based entirely outside Europe was a young Neymar playing for Santos in 2011. So it’s been a minute.
Megan Rapinoe won the women’s Ballon d’Or in 2019 while playing for Seattle Reign in the NWSL. So there’s precedent on the women’s side. Just not for men.
What happens if Argentina wins
Argentina faces Spain in the World Cup final. If Messi puts together one more vintage performance and lifts the trophy, he becomes the clear frontrunner for Ballon d’Or number nine. France Football basically said as much. They left the door wide open.
It would be the most Messi thing ever. Winning a ninth Ballon d’Or at 39 from a league that people in Europe still pretend doesn’t exist. The guy keeps finding ways to make the conversation revolve around him.
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