Messi Named La Liga’s Best Player…

Lionel Messi is simply the best…

For the fourth year straight year, the 25-year-old Argentine fútbol star has been named best forward and best player as Spain’s Liga de Fútbol Profesional handed out awards for the 2011-2012 season.

Lionel Messi
Messi’s Futbol Club Barcelona teammate Andres Iniesta was named best attacking midfielder and the squad’s captain, Carles Puyol, received the Fair Play award.

Real Madrid, which won the 2011-2012 first division title, was represented by Iker Casillas, best goalkeeper; Sergio Ramos, best defender; and Xabi Alonso, best defensive midfielder.

Best coach honors went to Pep Guardiola, who left Barça in May after four seasons highlighted by three Spanish titles and two Champions League crowns.

The award for top newcomer of the 2011-2012 campaign went to Francisco Alarcon, better known as “Isco,” of Malaga.

LFP players vote on the prizes for best player and best coach, while the awards for individual positions are decided by active LFP managers based on criteria set by a panel comprising respected former coaches.

Messi Earns His Second European Golden Boot

Lionel Messi is getting the boot again…

The 25-year-old Argentine striker received his second Golden Boot for being the top scorer in the European national leagues, thanks to his 50 goals last season with Futbol Club Barcelona in Spain’s La Liga.

Lionel Messi

And Messi, who was named the best international athlete at this year’s ESPY Awards, is ready for more accolades.

“My objective is to achieve many more great things,” said Messi, who claimed his third straight Ballon d’Or in January. “I’ve always been that way and I will be that way until the end of my career.”

Messi insisted, however, that what he really cares about are team honors, as he thanked his Barcelona teammates for helping him to a second Golden Boot.

“We fight to win titles. We’re lucky to be doing very well in Liga and in Champions (League), and tomorrow we begin the competition for the Copa del Rey, but I don’t battle for the Golden Boot,” said Messi.

Messi received the award at a gala event in Barcelona, where he was joined by teammates from Barça and the coach of the Argentine national team along with other prominent figures in soccer and sports.

Messi accepted the Golden Boot from former player and coach Luis Suarez, the only Spanish recipient of the Ballon d’Or, FIFA’s prize for World Player of the Year.

Messi, who has never played for another professional club, said his dream is to end his career with FC Barcelona.

Messi: Best Player in Europe Award Finalist

He’s already been named the best international athlete at the Espy Awards… And now Lionel Messi could be named the best fútbol player in Europe.

The 25-year-old Argentine soccer sensation, who has won FIFA’s Ballon d’Or for three years in a row, has been shortlisted for the 2011-12 UEFA Best Player in Europe Award. He’ll face-off against his Futbol Club Barcelona teammate Andrés Iniesta and Real Madrid’s Cristiano Ronaldo.
Lionel Messi
The three soccer stars gained the most points in a vote among 53 sports journalists representing each of the European soccer governing body’s member associations. The finalists are all being recognized for their great performance overall performance last season.

Juventus playmaker Andrea Pirlo came in fourth in the election, while Barcelona’s Xavi, who finished second in last year’s edition of the award, rounded out the top five.

The remaining three players will now go into a deciding vote in Monaco during the Champions League group stage draw on August 30.

Messi was the last year’s winner.

Messi Named Best International Athlete at ESPY Awards

The people have spoken… And, they’ve named Lionel Messi the best of the best…

The 25-year-old Argentine fútbol star—who claimed his third straight Ballon d’Or in January—was named Best International Athlete during Wednesday night’s ESPY Awards, which celebrate the year’s best athletes and moments in sports.

lionel-messi-barca

Messi, who plays for Futbol Club Barcelona in Spain’s La Liga, beat out some of the world’s biggest sports stars for the title, including tennis superstar Novak Djokovic, LPGA Championship winner Yani Tseng and his Real Madrid rival Cristiano Ronaldo.

During his record-breaking season, Messi scored 50 goals in La Liga and an unmatched 73 goals in all competitions. He also finished as the UEFA Champions League‘s top scorer for a fourth consecutive season with 14 goals.

But Messi wasn’t the only Latino athlete recognized…

Mario Gutierrez, who rode I’ll Have Another to victories in the Kentucky Derby and Preakness, won as best jockey.

The 25-year-old Mexican jockey beat out Javier Castellano, Ramon Dominguez
 and John Velazquez for the trophy.

Award winners are selected exclusively through online fan voting from the list of candidates selected by the ESPY Select Nominating Committee.

Rubio Among the Nine Latinos on Time’s 100 Influentials List

He may be the junior United States Senator from Florida with only about 15 months in office… But, Marco Rubio is already being hailed as one of the most influential people in the world.

The 40-year-old Cuban American politician appears on Time magazine’s just released list of the 100 Most Influential People in the World.

Senator Marco Rubio

“I knew there was something special about Marco Rubio when I first met him as a young Republican city commissioner. Bilingual and bicultural, he represents the best of the emerging second generation of Cuban immigrants,” writes former Florida governor Jeb Bush about the U.S. Senator who is being called a potential vice presidential pick for the Republican Party. “His ascendancy in politics has not surprised me or the people who know him. Rubio’s abiding faith in the promise of America is so compelling.”

But Senator Rubio isn’t the only Latino making Time’s ninth annual list. In all, nine Latinos made the cut, including three females.

Here’s a look at the rest of the world’s most influential Latinos, according to Time.

Louis C.K.

Louis C.K.
The 44-year-old Emmy and Grammy-winning Mexican-American comedian/actor is the star of FX’s comedy series Louie, which he also writes, directs and edits. Comedienne Joan Rivers writes of Louis C.K.:  “When he sent me the Louie episode he wanted me to do, I called him and said, ‘I like it, but I’d like to work with you on this.’ He was wonderful. There is absolutely no ego there — we reworked the script together and we improvised. It was such a meeting of the minds, such a joy.”

José Andrés
Last year, the 42-year-old Spanish chef and activist won the coveted James Beard Foundation‘s Outstanding Chef Award, the highest honor a chef in America can achieve. But José Andrés wasn’t honored for his gastronomic work; he was recognized for his philanthropic efforts. Fellow chef Anthony Bourdain writes about José Andrés: “That this gift of Spain to the U.S. is best known as a great chef with a portfolio of extraordinary restaurants in Washington, Los Angeles and Las Vegas is almost beside the point. He’s bigger and more important than that. No one kitchen — or 10 — can contain him. He is advocate, promoter, entrepreneur, philanthropist, artist. Keep up with him at your peril.”

Dulce Matuz

Dulce Matuz
The 27-year-old Mexican illegal immigrant and advocate is the president of the Arizona Dream Act Coalition, the group working to provide a path to citizenship to children of illegal immigrants. Desperate Housewives actress Eva Longoria writes about Dulce Matuz, who attended high school and college in Arizona: “An undocumented Latina confronted with legal barriers to pursuing her engineering dream, she chose to fight for the right to contribute to the country she has called home since she was young. As president of the Arizona Dream Act Coalition, Dulce promotes a path to citizenship for undocumented immigrants who, like her, were brought to the U.S. before they were 16, attend college or serve in the military and are of good moral character. Dulce takes on powerful opponents with grace and conviction, saying, ‘We are Americans, and Americans don’t give up.’”

Eike Batista

Eike Batista
The 55-year-old Brazilian business tycoon, one of the richest people in the world, is the owner and president of Brazilian conglomerate EBX Group. Eike Batista made the list for his commitment to social inclusion initiatives in Rio de Janeiro. The city’s mayor, Eduardo Paes, credited Batista for bolstering Rio’s successful bid to host the 2016 Olympics and for donating to civic initiatives. “He might be Brazil’s richest man and the world’s seventh richest, bringing vital investment to our city from oil and mining, but his most valuable asset is his commitment to Rio’s legacy,” writes Paes.

Juan Manuel Santos

Juan Manuel Santos
The 60-year-old Colombian President may be recognized for helping his country in its bid to be a more developed world player, but Colombian pop singer Shakira believes he’s also a strong leader at home, especially after working directly with President Juan Manuel Santos on education and childhood development programs throughout the country. She writes, “A leader is someone who understands the people’s vision of a better tomorrow and is willing to guide them there. In Colombia, we dream of a future of progress, prosperity and peace. By focusing on education, I believe President Santos is on the right track to make that dream a reality.”

Maria das Graças Silva Foster

Maria das Graças Silva Foster
The Brazilian oil engineer was recently named the CEO of Petrobras, one of the world’s biggest suppliers of oil. She becomes its first female CEO and the first woman to run a major oil company. And, she’s known for being a tough, no-nonsense operator. “Foster, 58, spent her early childhood in a working-class favela on the outskirts of Rio de Janeiro and collected recyclable cans and paper to help pay for school. A chemical engineer by training, she joined Petrobras and stayed for more than 30 years. Her tireless work habits earned her the nickname Caveirao, slang for the armored cars Brazilian police use to clear out slums,” writes Bryan Walsh, a senior editor at Time.

Dilma Rousseff
President
The 64-year-old Brazilian politician, considered one of the world’s most powerful women, is the first woman to hold the office of President in her native country. Argentina’s president Cristina Fernández De Kirchner writes of Rousseff, “She and I share many personal experiences: the drive that comes from our immigrant heritage, youthful activism and militancy and the challenges faced by women as they try to grow in a space dominated by men. And we agree that social inequality is the greatest problem facing our countries. Historically, what was “national” in Latin America used to run counter to the interests of the other nations in our region. Today, with the leadership of Dilma Rousseff, we see a Brazil convinced that its national interest is absolutely linked to the interests of its neighbors.”

Lionel-Messi-Barcelona-Football-Player

Lionel Messi
Earlier this year, the 24-year-old Argentinean soccer star, who plays for Futbol Club Barcelona, claimed his third consecutive FIFA Ballon d’Or, making him the first footballer to win the honor three years in a row. U.S. soccer star Mia Hamm writes of Lionel Messi: “He makes you hold your breath every time he touches the ball. It never seems to leave his feet. His love of the game and the pride he feels while playing for Barcelona and Argentina are palpable. Then you meet him, and you are reminded that he is only 5 ft. 7 in. (170 cm),” says Hamm. “He certainly has the potential to be remembered as the best player of all time, and I am so grateful for his approach to the game in this day and age. Clearly he plays because he loves it, and it shows every time he takes the field.

Click here for Time‘s complete list of influentials.

Messi Named World’s Best Player for Third Straight Year…

It’s official… Lionel Messi is the king of the soccer field.

The 24-year-old Argentinean soccer star, who plays for Futbol Club Barcelona has received the FIFA’s Ballon d’Or, making him the 2011 best player in the world. Messi beat out his Barça teammate Xavi Hernandez and Real Madrid’s Cristiano Ronaldo for the honor.

Lionel-Messi

Widely regarded as the world’s best forward, Messi is the first player to win the honor three years in a row. The only other three-time winners are Ronaldo (1996-97, 2002) and Zinedine Zidane (1998, 2000, 2003). The FIFA award was renamed last year when it merged with France Football’s Golden Ball.

“It’s a huge honor,” Messi said after accepting the trophy from the retired Brazilian great, Ronaldo.

Last year, Messi scored 55 goals for Barcelona, which won its third Champions League title in six seasons, and he scored four goals for Argentina‘s national team.

Messi received 48 percent of the points in votes cast by national team coaches and captains plus selected reporters. Cristiano Ronaldo finished second with 22 percent and Xavi had 9 percent to finish third.

“This one is very special because I want to share this with my friend and teammate Xavi. He deserves it,” Messi said.

Meanwhile, Xavi described his teammate as “one of the best footballers in the history of the sport.”

“He’s still young. I think he’s probably going to break all the records that exist in the sport,” Xavi said.

A Ballon d’Or Threepeat for Messi?

He’s the reigning Ballon d’Or winner, having won the coveted trophy two years in a row… And now Lionel Messi is on the verge of a threepeat!

But the 24-year-old Argentine soccer superstar will have to beat out his fellow Futbol Club Barcelona teammate Xavi and his Real Madrid rival Cristiano Ronaldo for the trophy, which is given annually to the player considered to have performed the best in the previous season.

Lionel-Messi-Barcelona-Football-Player

The three players were shortlisted this week for the 2011 FIFA Ballon d’Or, with Messi the strong favorite to become only the second player in the award’s 55-year history to claim the trophy hat-trick in successive years.

Michael Platini, now president of European soccer’s governing body Uefa, is the only player to have achieved the feat to date. The Frenchman took home the award in 1983, 1984 and 1985.

Dutch stars Johan Cruyff and Marco van Basten also claimed the title three times, but not in successive years.

The Ballon d’Or is awarded based on votes by coaches and captains of international teams, as well as journalists from around the world.

Meanwhile, Brazil’s Marta will face off against the United States’ Abby Wambach and Japan’s Homare Sawa for the player of the year crown in the women’s division.

The 2011 awards will be voted for by national team coaches and captains, as well as a panel of soccer journalists.

The winners will be presented at a special ceremony in Zurich, Switzerland on January 9.