The world’s soccer community has been raging from the beginning of the new year. This is because there are suspicions that the Ballon d’Or award, which was considered to have the highest authority, has been exposed to lobbying. In particular, it is shocking to see who is suspected of having lobbied. Paris Saint-Germain (PSG), which is considered one of the best clubs in the world.
The content and reason are even more shocking. PSG is suspected of lobbying and pressure on Ballon d’Or organizers to award Lionel Messi, who joined the team in 2021, his seventh career Ballon d’Or award. Of course, PSG is now completely denying these allegations. However, various circumstantial evidences are adding weight to the PSG lobbying scandal.
British media Daily Mail reported on the 8th (Korean time) that PSG denied reports that Messi, who had just signed a contract with the team in 2021, pressured the organizers to win the Ballon d’Or award. However, Messi barely beat Roberto Lewandowski at the time.
If the scandal turns out to be true, it could have huge repercussions. Messi’s authority and reputation, who has won eight Ballon d’Or awards so far, could be damaged. PSG cannot be free from criticism that it also tried to undermine the authority of Ballon d’Or, which was launched in his own country for Messi and raised his status as an award to the world’s best soccer player. 사설 토토사이트
Such suspicions were raised by the prestigious French daily Le Monde. The media outlet revealed that “PSG lobbied for Messi’s Ballon d’Or award by providing gifts and other benefits to Pascal Ferre, the director of the organizing committee for the 2021 Ballon d’Or Awards and editor-in-chief of French Football Magazine.”
There was also evidence to support this revelation. An investigation by the French police inspector general found that Pereth received game tickets and business tickets from PSG in 2020 and 2021 when he was the editor of French Football. Pereth is currently in charge of media public relations for PSG’s first team after resigning as the editor of French Football. Much of this circumstantial evidence is fueling rumors of PSG’s lobbying.
However, PSG and Pere have both denied the allegations. Pere also claimed that he voted for Lewandowski, then a Bayern Munich player. In 2021, Lewandowski was expected to be a leading Ballon d’Or winner as he scored 41 goals, breaking the Bundesliga record for the most goals in 49 years. However, Messi won his seventh Ballon d’Or by just 33 points, beating Lewandowski.
The Ballon d’Or Award, created by French Football magazine, is a prestigious award given to the world’s best soccer player. Messi has won eight awards so far, the most in history. However, if the PSG rumor turns out to be true, it will undermine not only the authority of Ballon d’Or but also Messi’s reputation.
