Lionel Messi wins Princess of Asturias Award for Sports 2026

Argentinian football star Lionel Messi has won the 2026 Princess of Asturias Award for Sports.

The award was announced on Wednesday by the jury in charge of selecting the winner.

A statement from the Princess of Asturias Foundation said Messi was chosen for his long career of excellence, achievements in sports, and global influence.

Messi was born on June 24, 1987, in Rosario, Argentina. He started with Newell’s Old Boys youth team before joining FC Barcelona’s La Masia academy at age 13.

He made his first-team debut in 2004 and became one of the most decorated footballers ever.

During his over 15 years at Barcelona, he won 35 trophies. This includes four UEFA Champions League titles, 10 La Liga titles, seven Copa del Rey trophies, three FIFA Club World Cups, three UEFA Super Cups, and eight Spanish Super Cups.

Later, Messi moved to Paris Saint-Germain and then to Inter Miami CF in Major League Soccer, where he plays now.

On the international scene, he has won two Copa América titles and led Argentina to victory in the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022.

Messi is known as one of the most successful footballers of all time. He has 47 career titles and many individual awards.

He has won the Ballon d’Or eight times, The Best FIFA Men’s Player award three times, and the European Golden Boot six times.

Messi also holds the Guinness World Record for most goals in a calendar year, scoring 91 goals in 2012. He is a two-time Laureus World Sportsman of the Year, winning in 2020 and 2023.

The Foundation praised his status as a global sports figure. Despite facing health issues as a child due to a growth condition, he became a symbol of hard work, humility, and teamwork.

The Foundation also mentioned his charitable work through the Leo Messi Foundation and his role as a UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador.

The Princess of Asturias Foundation said the award honors “careers that promote, support, and advance sports and social commitment, showing the benefits of sports for people.”

This year’s sports award considered 27 nominees from 12 different countries.

The sports award is the sixth of eight Princess of Asturias Awards to be revealed in this year’s 46th edition.

Previous winners include Patti Smith (Arts), Studio Ghibli (Communication and Humanities), David Klenerman, Shankar Balasubramanian, and Pascal Mayer (Technical and Scientific Research), the Svalbard Global Seed Vault (International Cooperation), and Timothy Garton Ash (Social Sciences).

The Literature and Concord awards will be announced soon.

The awards ceremony will happen in October in Oviedo, Spain. The King and Queen of Spain will attend, along with the Princess of Asturias and Infanta Sofía.

Each award comes with a Joan Miró sculpture, a diploma, an insignia, and a cash prize of €50,000.