Lionel Messi extended his personal record with an eighth Ballon d'Or trophy, winning the 2023 title to push his resume as the greatest of all time ever further.
The Argentine, on the heels of leading his home nation to the 2022 FIFA World Cup title, was confirmed as the most recent winner of football's most prestigious individual award in an October 30 ceremony from Paris, France.
As is tradition, Messi gave a short speech after being handed the trophy by Inter Miami owner David Beckham, who was invited to be this year's presenter of the award.
With the world watching, Messi spoke on his family, his international teammates, his time in Paris, and his football future on the stage in the French capital.
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Lionel Messi Ballon d'Or winner speech 2023
Upon receiving the 2023 Ballon d'Or, Lionel Messi gave a short speech on the stage at the Theatre du Chatelet.
💬 The speech of the 2023 Ballon d'Or winner, Lionel Messi #ballondor pic.twitter.com/HRaNdRwclG
— Ballon d'Or #ballondor (@ballondor) October 30, 2023
"Good evening," Messi said. "Thank you very much. First of all, I want to thank the people who voted, who selected me as the winner of this award. I obviously share this with my teammates from the Argentina national team — we are here representing everything that's been achieved thanks to them. I believe that this is a gift for the entire group, the entire coaching staff, and for all the people of Argentina.
"I don't want to forget to mention Erling [Haaland] and Kylian [Mbappe], they had a great year, an incredible year, both individually and collectively. It was spectacular to watch them achieve everything they did, and I have no doubt that in the coming years they are going to win this prize.
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"I see a lot of young people here. I have no doubt that I am going to enjoy good football for a long time because of these types of players. I am lucky to have been at this ceremony for many years, and as the players keep changing and evolving, the level never drops, so we are going to continue enjoying it for many years.
"I want to make special mention to those who have followed me throughout my career, because of how they experienced this World Cup. The desire they had for me to be world champion so that I can achieve my dream, the only one which I was missing... It was thanks to God that I received a lot of love, which was very special as many people of different nationalities wanted Argentina to be world champions.
"I want to share and thank my families, the fans who are in Argentina and those in Miami, and of course my personal family, my wife and children once again."
Messi finished his speech by wishing a happy birthday to the late Diego Maradona.
After his initial speech, Messi then proceeded to answer a few questions from the hosts, Didier Drogba and Sandy Heribert.
When asked how long he would continue playing before hanging up his boots, Messi said, "As long as I can continue competing, I'm going to continue doing it. I can't say a number because I don't know what can happen tomorrow. I hope it's a long time. It's what I know how to do. I hope it continues to last."
Messi was then joined on stage by his family to all be recognised for their accomplishments and sacrifices.
Family time for Messi! 😍#ballondor pic.twitter.com/CYGQKh9YMX
— Ballon d'Or #ballondor (@ballondor) October 30, 2023
