FIFA Ballon d’Or Awards 2011: Lionel Messi, Homare Sawa Win Player Of The Year Awards

“See, Wayne? I voted for you!”

“Aww, John, you sentimental booby. Hug!”

Messi scored an exceptional 53 goals and tallied 24 assists across all competitions for FC Barcelona during the entirety of last season. During the first half of the 2011-12 season, Messi has scored 31 goals and racked up 14 assists in just 28 games. His Barcelona team won the league and UEFA Champions League double last season, and recently won the 2011 Club World Cup.

For the first time in five years, the FIFA Women’s World Player of the Year is not Brazilian superstar Marta. She has won the award every year since 2006, but thanks to Japan’s wonderful performance at the 2011 FIFA Women’s World Cup and Brazil’s early exit, a new reign has started. Women’s World Cup Golden Boot and Golden Ball winner Homare Sawa has been named the World Player of the Year, breaking Marta’s incredible streak.

Though some will argue that Marta’s great performances in club football should have been taken into account, it’s very tough to argue that FIFA did not get this one right. The World Cup almost always trumps club football when it comes to FIFA awards in both men’s and women’s football, and Sawa was clearly the top performer at the last World Cup. Not only did she score the most goals and win the Golden Ball, but she scored the game-winning goal in the semifinals and the game-tying goal of the final, which sent the final to penalty kicks.

When earthquakes and tsunamis hit Japan in March of 2011, they destroyed millions of lives and had devastating effects on infrastructure and the economy. At that point, football was the last thing on anyone’s mind, but the natural disaster happened just three months before the Japan women’s national football team was set to head to Germany for the 2011 FIFA Women’s World Cup. There were questions about whether or not they could participate in the tournament.

Not only did they participate, but as everyone knows by now, they won the tournament. The Japanese FA have done an incredible job to keep that team and the men’s national team, as well as youth football and the J. League running in a difficult situation.

Though Real Madrid were able to grab the Copa Del Rey title last season, Barcelona beat them to both the La Liga and the UEFA Champions League titles. Barcelona also won one smaller competitions under Guardiola last season, capturing the Supercopa de España. During the calendar year 2011, Barcelona won another Supercopa, as well as the FIFA Club World Cup and the European Super Cup over FC Porto.

Unsurprisingly, after guiding Japan to a minor upset victory at the FIFA Women’s World Cup, Japan national team manager Norio Sasaki has been named the FIFA Women’s World Coach of the Year. Japan has always been respectable in women’s football, but has become a team able to contend with powerhouses like the United States and Germany since Sasaki took charge.

In the year he took over the team, 2008, Japan won the East Asian Football Championships and went to the semifinals of the Beijing Summer Olympics. He guided them through World Cup Qualifying, then to the World Cup title by consecutively defeating women’s football powerhouses Germany, Sweden and the United States. Homare Sawa’s 117th minute equalizer in the final was arguably the highlight of the tournament, and Japan would go on to win the title against the USA on penalty kicks.

From the official FIFA website, describing the award:

Ferguson has been the manager of the Red Devils since 1986. He has won the Premier League 12 times and has won three Champions League titles. Prior to arriving at United, Ferguson won three Scottish Premier League titles and a UEFA Cup with Aberdeen. Ferguson is also up for the FIFA Men’s Coach of the Year this season.

FIFA / FIFPro World XI 2011

The Real Madrid players were not able to attend, as they play a Copa Del Rey match away to Malaga on Tuesday. Zinedine Zidane, France and Real Madrid legend, was in attendance to collect the awards for the players who were unable to attend.

Here are the finalists in the individual footballing award categories.

Men’s Ballon d’Or