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Winning a major international tournament with the national team is one of the greatest honours for any player. Club football offers the opportunity to lift league titles and continental trophies like the UEFA Champions League every year. However, the major international tournaments are not as frequently held.
The holy grail of all international tournaments, the FIFA World Cup, takes place every four years. That makes it much more difficult to bag the winner's medal there. Winning individual honours at these tournaments is an even more difficult task, and requires a certain element of luck as well.
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Only a few players have won the best player award in multiple international tournaments
There have been instances in the FIFA World Cup where the player of the tournament is not from the winning side. That just goes to show that winning the best player award in international tournaments is not as easy as it seems.
Lionel Messi is one of the few players to have won the Golden Ball in the World Cup and Copa America. Meanwhile, his long-time rival Cristiano Ronaldo is yet to win it across the World Cup and Euros.
The stage is now set for the FIFA World Cup in 2022. On that note, here's a look at the five players with the most player of the tournament awards in international competitions.
Note: Ahmad Hassan (Egypt)'s both Player of the competition awards came in AFCON (2006 & 2010), so he is excluded from this list.
#5 Zinedine Zidane - Euro 2000 & FIFA World Cup 2006
Zinedine Zidane is widely considered one of the greatest midfielders of all time. The Frenchman rose to prominence with Bordeaux, and won the Ligue 1 Young Player of the year award. It was just the first of many individual honours he would go on to win in his highly successful career.
He is one of the few players to have won almost every major title with club and country. He was part of the France squad that lifted the World Cup in 1998. They came out on top against a Brazil team that boasted the likes of Ronaldo Nazario, Rivaldo, Cafu and Roberto Carlos.
He bagged a brace in the final, winning the Man of the Match award. Thanks to a great season with Juventus, he would also go on to win the Ballon d'Or award that year.
Zidane then led France to a triumph at the European Championship only two years later, winning the best player of the tournament award. He scored twice in that competition, both goals coming in the knockout stage of the competition.
His international career with Les Bleus came to a dramatic end with a red card in the 2006 World Cup final against Italy, though, which France lost on penalties. However, he will be remembered for his match-winning performances against Brazil and Portugal in the quarter-finals and semi-finals.
He also scored a goal in the final, which earned him the Golden Ball award, the second player of the tournament award for the Frenchman.
#4 Ronaldo Nazario - Copa America 1997 & FIFA World Cup 1998
Ronaldo Nazario or R9 is one of the greatest strikers of all time. His eye-catching performances in the final third have inspired a lot of present-day attackers, including Zlatan Ibrahimovic.
The player was an absolute beast in his prime. He remains the youngest-ever recipient of the Ballon d'Or, winning it in 1997 as a 21-year-old. He won four trophies that year, including the Copa America with Brazil in the summer.
Ronaldo scored five goals in that tournament, including a brace in the quarter-final and one n the final. He won the MVP award at the tournament. The Brazilian won the tournament again in 1999, finishing as the top scorer this time.
Brazil were in the final of the 1998 World Cup, thanks largely to Ronaldo, who scored four goals, three of them in the knockouts. He struggled with an injury before the final, where Brazil suffered a chastening defeat against France, though. Nevertheless, Ronaldo was awarded the Golden Ball for his performances throughout the tournament.
The striker would have his redemption in the next edition of the competition, scoring twice in the final. Ronaldo scored eight goals as he led his side to their fifth and latest FIFA World Cup triumph.
#3 Pele - Copa America 1959 & World Cup 1970
Pele is one of the greatest players of all time, turning heads with his goalscoring prowess for club and country. The legendary striker won three FIFA World Cups with Brazil. In his maiden appearance at the tournament in 1958, he won the Silver Ball. He scored six goals, including a brace in the final against Sweden, at the age of just 17.
Only a year later, he finished as the top scorer at the erstwhile South American Championship in 1959. He won the Best Player award as the Selecao finished as the runner-up. Pele never won the Copa America trophy in his career, though.
Just a year before hanging his boots in 1971, the player helped Brazil to their third FIFA World Cup triumph in 1970. That Brazil squad is considered one of the greatest ever in the history of the tournament. Jairzhinho was Brazil's top scorer with seven goals, including strikes in the quarter-finals, semi-finals and final.
#2 Jose Nassazzi - Copa America 1923, 1935, and FIFA World Cup 1930
Uruguay were one of the superpowers in world football in the fledgling days of international football. They hosted and won the inaugural edition of the FIFA World Cup in 1930.
Jose Nassazzi was the best player in a highly successful Uruguay team during the 1920s and 1930s. The midfielder is often considered the country's best player ever.
His trophy collection includes Copa America titles (1923, 1924, 1926 and 1935), and the FIFA World Cup (1930). He also helped his team win gold medals at the 1924 and 1928 Summer Olympics.
El Gran Mariscal was awarded the player of the tournament in the Copa America 1923 and 1935. He won the Best player award in the inaugural edition of the FIFA World Cup in 1930 too.
#1 Lionel Messi - Copa America 2015, 2021 & World Cup 2014
Lionel Messi enjoyed a great year n 2021, as he was finally able to win an international trophy with Argentina. He was the top goalscorer (four goals) and assist-provider (five assists) in Copa America as Argentina defeated Brazil in the final.
Messi won the Best Player of the Tournament award, alongside Neymar. The Argentine is no stranger to individual accolades, and is one of the most decorated players in the game's history.
No player has won more player of the tournament awards in international tournaments than the PSG attacker. Messi won a record-extending seventh Ballon d'Or award this year, with his performances at Copa America 2021 playing a big role in Messi winning that.
