Vinicius, Bonmati Named FIFA Best Players of The Year

Real Madrid and Brazil winger Vinicius Junior has been named the men’s player of the year at the Fifa Best Awards.

The 24-year-old and his club boycotted the recent Ballon d’Or ceremony after missing out to Manchester City’s Rodri – but he picked up this prize in Doha.

Vinicius played a key role in Real’s Champions League and La Liga-winning campaign in 2023-24, scoring 24 goals and providing 11 assists.

This was the first time Vinicius has won the award

Earlier in the ceremony, Barcelona midfielder Aitana Bonmati was named the women’s player of the year for the second year in a row.

Bonmati was a key part of the Spain team that won the 2023 Women’s World Cup and won the Golden Ball award for the best player in the tournament.

She was awarded the women’s Ballon d’Or in 2023 and 2024 and won the Champions League with Barcelona in the same successive years.

The Ballon d’Or and Fifa Best Awards are the two most prestigious in football.

The award – for football from August 2023 to August 2024 – was decided by a mix of public vote, one journalist from each country and the captain and manager of each national team.

Each group’s vote counted for 25 percent.

Real Madrid were already in Qatar for Wednesday’s Fifa Intercontinental Cup final.