Cristiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi, Mohammad Salah headline Globe Soccer Awards in Dubai

Dubai: Portuguese star Cristiano Ronaldo will be joined by Barcelona’s Lionel Messi and a host of Liverpool players including Alisson Becker, Mohammad Salah, Sadio Mane and Virgil van Dijk for the Best Men’s Player of the Year Award at the annual Globe Soccer Awards to be held in Dubai at the end of December.

Organised in partnership with Dubai Sports Council (DSC), the 11th edition of the annual awards ceremony will take place in the presence of some of the top footballing minds at Madinat Jumeirah Dubai on December 29.

For the first time in the history of the awards, Globe Soccer has included three new categories in recognition of the world’s best female footballing talent, namely Best Women’s Player of the Year, Best Club of the Year and Best Referee of the Year.

The candidates and eventual winners will be chosen by a specially set up Globe Soccer jury that includes leading industry experts such as coaches Fabio Capello and Antonio Conte and two-time European Champions League winner and now director of football at Barcelona, Eric Abidal, among others.

“The sport is going from strength to strength and with the popularity of the Women’s World Cup earlier this year, watched by over 1.5 billion people across the globe and an impressive fan base, we wanted to recognise the immense talent that is evident across the board,” Tommaso Bendoni, CEO of Globe Soccer, said.

“We will be welcoming the biggest names in football to Dubai for another all-star event including international players, coaches and the people who work behind the scenes to make competitions possible.”

Liverpool are expected to dominate the awards this year, thanks largely to a magical season that saw them being crowned European champions for the sixth time along with the runners-up spot in the English Premier League. Four of the club’s players — Mane, Salah, Becker and Van Dijk — are in the running for the best player award, while Jurgen Klopp is a hot favourite as best coach.

The Globe Soccer Awards are considered part of the ‘Grand Slam’ of football award ceremonies alongside the Ballon d’Or and the Best Fifa Football Awards held each year.

The awards will follow the 14th Dubai International Sports Conference to be held at the same venue on December 28, where a wide range of speakers, including club owners, coaches, players and sponsors will discuss the future development in football. Established in 2010, the Globe Soccer Awards are aimed at recognising not just the best players and coaches, but also the people who work behind the scenes.

AWARDS

Best player (men)

Alisson Becker, Liverpool

Bernardo Silva, Manchester City

Cristiano Ronaldo, Juventus

Lionel Messi, Barcelona

Mohammad Salah, Liverpool

Sadio Mane, Liverpool

Virgil van Dijk, Liverpool

Best player (women)

Ada Hegerberg, Lyon

Alex Morgan, Orlando

Amandine Henry, Lyon

Lucy Bronze, Lyon    

Marta Vieira da Silva, Orlando

Megan Rapinoe, Reign           

Sari van Veenendaal, Atletico

Best club

Ajax Amsterdam         

Liverpool   

Olympique Lyonnais Feminin

Best coach

Djamel Belmadi           

Erik Ten Hag    

Fernando Santos

Jurgen Klopp  

Massimiliano Allegri

Others

Best sporting director

Best agent

Best revelation

Best goalkeeper

Player Career Award x 2

Coach Career Award

Best Referee

Sport Business Award

Kooora — Best Arab Coach Award

Kooora — Best Arab Player Award