The exceptional Spanish player Alexia Putellas is again world footballer of the year. The 29-year-old from FC Barcelona won the election against English European champion Beth Mead and US star Alex Morgan and, like last year, received the award. Putellas was honored on Monday evening at the gala “The Best FIFA Football Awards” in Paris.
Putellas has been playing for the Spanish national team since 2013. Before the European Championships last year, she experienced a sporting drama: one day before the tournament started, she suffered a cruciate ligament tear in training. European champion Mead, top scorer of the European Championships and also player of the tournament, surprisingly went away empty-handed.
The final decision was made without German participation. Lena Oberdorf and Alexandra Popp from VfL Wolfsburg were in the shortlist, but did not receive the required number of votes.
In the other awards in women’s football, the English European champions cleared away. Sarina Wiegman became world coach for the third time after 2017 and 2020, the Dutchwoman has been coaching the Lionesses since 2021. Mary Earps from Manchester United also won the world goalkeeper election.
The German national player Ann-Katrin Berger from FC Chelsea, who had announced a renewed illness with thyroid cancer after the EM 2022, was one of the three finalists as in the previous year. Chilean Christiane Endler (Olympique Lyon) also made it into the final selection.
