David Beckham backs Lionel Messi to win 2026 Ballon d’Or

David Beckham believes Lionel Messi deserves to win the 2026 Ballon d’Or after another outstanding season with Inter Miami and Argentina.

The former England captain and Inter Miami co-owner was speaking after Messi inspired the American club to victory in the Campeones Cup, scoring his 100th goal for the team and setting up Casemiro’s goal in a 2-0 win over Mexican side Cruz Azul early on Thursday.

“When you see him do things like that, and when you see what he did at the World Cup, there is no player aged 39 who can do that and perform at that level,” Beckham said, as quoted by the BBC.

“He deserves to be among the Ballon d’Or nominees and, in my opinion, he should win it.”

Messi produced an exceptional World Cup campaign with Argentina, scoring eight goals and providing four assists as his side reached the final, where they lost to Spain.

The Argentine also has 12 assists across his World Cup appearances, including 10 in the knockout stages. No other player in the tournament’s history has matched that total, with the next-best tally standing at eight assists.

Messi is second on the World Cup’s all-time goalscoring list with 21 goals, behind France forward Kylian Mbappe, who has scored 22.

Messi reaches Inter Miami milestone

Messi brought up his 100th goal for Inter Miami against Cruz Azul by opening the scoring in the 24th minute.

He headed the ball into the net after meeting a cross from team-mate Luis Suarez. The 39-year-old then appeared to have doubled his side’s advantage after going through one-on-one and finishing into the goal, but the effort was ruled out for offside.

He still had a decisive role in securing the trophy. In the 81st minute, Messi delivered a corner which Casemiro met with a header to seal Inter Miami’s first Campeones Cup title.

The achievement came after Messi announced last August that he had retired from international football. He has also spoken about his future in the sport following the death of his father, Jorge.