Sam Kerr nominated for FIFA Best Player as Ronaldo is snubbed

Australian football ace Sam Kerr was once again recognized for his outstanding performance and shortlisted as the Best FIFA Female Player of the year.

The Chelsea and Matildas forward tops a list of 14 star names also revealed by the sport’s governing body Best FIFA Men’s Player Thursday’s list excluding Lionel Messi as the standout favorite and Cristiano Ronaldo for the first time.

Kerr signs autographs for fans after the women’s international soccer match between Australia and Thailand at Central Coast Stadium, Gosford

Kerr was honored after another outstanding season for club and country, winning the FA Cup and Women’s Super League doubles with Chelsea and lifting the Golden Boot as England’s top scorer for the second straight season.

The 2022 Player of the Year was also Australia’s top scorer at the AFC Women’s Asian Cup, but she faces tremendous resistance in the battle for the big prize after finishing second to Alexia Putellas in the same awards last year.

Kerr has also ranked third in voting behind winner Putellas for the other major global award, the Ballon d’Or Feminine, for the past two years.

Barcelona star Putellas is back on the list despite missing much of the past year through injury.

She is alongside three members of the England team who triumphed at the Women’s EURO – top scorer Beth Mead, captain Leah Williamson and midfielder Keira Walsh – and Kerr’s Canadian team-mate at Chelsea, Jessie Fleming.

Messi also tops a list of 14 including 2022 Ballon d’Or winner Karim Benzema, two-time winner Robert Lewandowski, Paris St Germain team-mate Kylian Mbappe and Manchester City’s top scorer Erling Haaland.

Sam Kerr battles for the ball for Chelsea during the Women’s Champions League match against Paris St Germain at Stamford Bridge, London

Ronaldo endured a bitter end to his playing career at both Manchester United and Portugal and is now missing out on his first FIFA Best Player nomination

But it felt like an era had ended as Ronaldo’s name was conspicuous by his absence.

The Portuguese, who was sacked by Manchester United and benched by Portugal during the World Cup, won the FIFA first two year award in 2016 and 2017 and finished on the podium in the following three years.

While Messi seemed sure to be rewarded this time for orchestrating Argentina’s World Cup triumph, Ronaldo wasn’t even picked as a contender by a FIFA-appointed panel.

The other Australian nominated in the FIFA Best lists is Alou Kuol, the older brother of Newcastle prodigy Garang, who is competing for the Puskas Award for best goal of the calendar year.

The 21-year-old scored a stunning ‘scorpion kick’ effort for Australia U23s against Iran U23s and will be judged for his shot against 10 other top players including Mbappe’s stunning second in the World Cup final.

Nominees for the award:

Men: Julian Alvarez, Jude Bellingham, Karim Benzema, Kevin De Bruyne, Erling Haaland, Achraf Hakimi, Robert Lewandowski, Sadio Mane, Kylian Mbappe, Lionel Messi, Luka Modric, Neymar, Mohamed Salah, Vinicius Junior

Women: Aitana Bonmati, Debinha, Jessie Fleming, Ada Hegerberg, Sam Kerr, Beth Mead, Vivianne Miedema, Alex Morgan, Lena Oberdorf, Alexandra Popp, Alexia Putellas, Wendie Renard, Keira Walsh, Leah Williamson.