Messi selected as Time magazine's 2023 Player of the Year First male soccer player, non-American

Lionel Messi (36, Inter Miami) was the first male soccer player to be named Time Magazine's Player of the Year.

The Times reported on the 6th (Korean time) that Messi was selected as the 2023 Player of the Year.

As a result, Messi became the first male soccer player to be selected as Player of the Year awarded by the Times since 2019. He is also the first non-American player to do so.

The Times selected Alex Morgan and Megan Rapinoe of the U.S. women's soccer team as its first recipients in 2019. After selecting LeBron James of the National Basketball Association (NBA) and Simone Biles of USA Gymnastics, last year, Aaron Judge of the New York Yankees of the Major League Baseball (MLB) was selected as Player of the Year.

Messi won the Ballon d'Or, given to the world's best player, again this year, making her the eighth person to win the award. Messi's eighth Ballon d'Or award is a new record in the soccer world.

However, the reason the Times selected Messi was largely different.

Time magazine said, “Messi achieved what seemed impossible while wearing the Inter Miami uniform. “He made the United States a soccer nation,” he said, adding that Messi had a great influence on the U.S. professional sports landscape beyond Major League Soccer (MLS).

Messi made his first appearance on the American stage wearing Inter Miami's uniform last July. Inter Miami, which had always been in the bottom half of the league, achieved its first win in the club's history in the League Cup after Messi joined. At that time, Messi led the team to victory by scoring 10 goals in 7 games.

The effect of Messi joining Inter Miami is not only seen in grades. Tickets for Inter Miami's home games rose from $40 (about 50,000 won) to at least $3 million (about 380,000 won) after Messi joined the team. In addition, Inter Miami's uniforms have become valuable items that are not easily obtained.

Additionally, Inter Miami's social media follower count soared from 1 million to 15.4 million. In addition, Apple TV, which has exclusive broadcasting rights to MLS, created approximately 170,000 new subscribers.

In addition, Inter Miami's match has become the most talked-about event in the United States. It attracted everyone's attention, with not only sports stars from other sports, but also pop stars and Hollywood stars visiting the stadium.

With the entry of Messi, MLS has become competitive in the American professional sports market dominated by the National Football League (NFL), NBA, and MLB. 19가이드03