Time Magazine Votes Lionel Messi as the Best Athlete of 2023

Argentine football star Lionel Messi has been named the best athlete of 2023 by US magazine Time.

Football superstar Lionel Messi continuously receives noble titles. (Source: Daily Mail)

Time magazine honored Messi for the positive influence that the 36-year-old player created after moving to Inter Miami FC and helping the US Major League Soccer (MLS) create great attraction.

This milestone not only makes Messi the first soccer player in history to be honored by Time magazine, but also the first non-American athlete to be given such a great honor by a prestigious world- class newspaper.

Time commented: "Lionel Messi has done what seemed impossible this year, when he signed a contract with Inter Miami, which is to turn America into a football nation."

Messi made his debut for Inter Miami FC in July after leaving Paris Saint-Germain (France). He marked his appearance with a direct free kick in the final minutes of the match to bring a 2-1 victory for his home club.

With the biggest signing in history and a world champion in hand, Inter Miami won the Leagues Cup - their first major trophy - beating Nashville in a final in which Messi scored.

The Argentine international scored 11 goals in 14 games in all competitions to finish the season. Not only did he have a groundbreaking impact on Inter Miami and MLS in general, Messi also helped change the public perception of soccer in the United States, which was considered "inferior" to other sports such as basketball or football.

On the day Messi made his Inter Miami debut, Apple TV added 110,000 new subscribers in the US for MLS Season Pass - the digital TV service that exclusively streams all MLS matches.

This represents a 1,700% increase, an unprecedented increase in Argentina, Brazil, Mexico and Europe. In addition, Inter Miami has also seen revenue increase to a record $120 million in 2023 (through November 2023), more than double last year, and is now on track to surpass $200 million.

Last October, Messi won his eighth Ballon d'Or after helping Argentina win the World Cup in Qatar in 2022.

Not only did Messi set a record for the number of times he won the award, he also became the first player in history to win the Ballon d'Or while playing outside of Europe, and helped MLS have its first representative win the Ballon d'Or.

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