WATCH: Erling Haaland’s dad’s EPIC reaction to Lionel Messi’s FIFA Best Award win goes viral

Alf-Inge Haaland was unimpressed to see Messi crowned as The Best FIFA Men's Player for 2023.

WATCH: Erling Haaland’s dad’s EPIC reaction to Lionel Messi’s FIFA Best Award win goes viral

Alf-Inge Haaland's reaction to Lionel Messi being announced as the winner. (Via X/@CrewsMat10 & centregoals)

The FIFA The Best Awards were announced on Monday night in Paris as a familiar face ‘lifted’ the award. World Cup winner Lionel Messi was voted to the title by fans, coaches and National team captains. The award was heavily contested between the Argentine and Erling Haaland. The Norwegian had an impressive 2023 with Pep Guardiola‘s Manchester City as well.

While many argued that Haaland had an equal claim to the award, the #9 was absent from the ceremony. However, his father and former Manchester City player Alf-Inge Haaland were in attendance for the ceremony, as Lionel Messi was named the Men’s Player of the Year for 2023. The camera captured his expression as the winner was announced, and it is safe to say that he was not impressed.

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The former footballer appeared to close his eyes and shake his head in surprise. He also raised his eyebrows as if to say that he was expecting a different winner, namely, his son Erling Haaland.

FS Video

The Norwegian striker’s record-breaking season also saw him lift the treble with Manchester City. Meanwhile, Alf-Inge Haaland’s reaction has since gone viral on social media.

Lionel Messi votes for Erling Haaland in FIFA The Best Awards

Even though Lionel Messi edged Erling Haaland to the award, he managed to do so by the finest of margins. After the award was announced, the votes received by each player were revealed. Kylian Mbappe came third, with a total of 35 points. Both Lionel Messi and Erling Haaland were tied at 48 points, but the former came out on top by more votes from club captains.

Lionel Messi voted for Erling Haaland and Kylian Mbappe in his top two. (Via BBC and Goal.com)

However, Lionel Messi’s votes revealed a surprising player in first place. The Argentine voted for Erling Haaland as his number-one pick for the award. Norway captain Martin Odegaard also voted for the Argentine, as he placed Lionel Messi second on his list. As a tie-breaker, it was seen that Lionel Messi received 13 captains’ votes while Haaland got 11.

Another shocking revelation was that Real Madrid players Luka Modric and Federico Valverde cast their votes for Lionel Messi, thereby putting him ahead of Haaland. While Erling Haaland came second, Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola was named The Best Men’s Coach. Both Messi and Haaland made it into the FIFPro Men’s World XI, alongside notable names like Kylian Mbappe and Kevin De Bruyne.

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