There is still debate as to whether Messi really deserved the award in 2023, some argue that the simple fact that he won the World Cup was a big reason for him to win the award.

In my opinion, what made this Ballon d'Or event gain so much notoriety in this 21st decade was the fact that great players like Ronaldinho, Messi and CR7 won the Ballon d'Or so many times (especially the latter two).

I remember that in 2010 Snejder had a great World Cup, but the one who won the award was L. Messi, despite not having had a good World Cup that year, generating controversy with some accusing this event of only awarding super popular players.

In short, i agree with some annual awards and disagree with some.