Who will Lionel Messi battle in the 2023 ESPYS for Best Male Athlete award? Opponents include Super Bowl winner and NBA Finals MVP
Argentina captain Lionel Messi has been nominated in three categories for the ESPYs 2023 award. The Argentine is nominated for the best Soccer player, best athlete, and best championship-winning performance categories.
NFL star Patrick Mahomes, Baseball star Aaron Judge, and NBA ace Nikola Jokic are the other nominees for the best athlete category.
Manchester City's Erling Haaland, Barcelona women's Aitana Bonmati, and Portland Thorns' Sophia Smith are nominated for the best Soccer player category.
UFC welterweight champion Leon Edwards, NBA star Nikola Jokic, and LPGA star Rose Zhang are among the nominees for the best championship-winning performance category.
Lionel Messi previously won the ESPYs best athlete award back in 2015. After leading Argentina to FIFA World Cup glory in 2022, he could win the prize again this year. Messi has already won the Laureus 2023.
Lionel Messi asked his Argentina teammate Thiago Almada about MLS
Lionel Messi will join MLS club Inter Miami as a free agent upon the expiration of his Paris Saint-Germain contract on June 30. He will embark on a new journey after putting an end to his time in European football.
Messi's national teammate, Thiago Almada, currently plays for MLS side Atlanta United. Ahead of Argentina's recent friendly clash against Australia, Almada revealed that Messi asked him about the league. Almada, though, said he was lazy in his reply.
The player told TyC Sport:
"The other day (Messi) asked me, and I was half behind with that information. He wanted to know what the tournament and the matches were like. I didn't know much. I was half lazy. Then I'll find out, I told him."
He added:
"I'm happy that Lionel can come to the league. People are crazy about his arrival. They're going to enjoy it a lot, and they're going to treat him very well."
Messi's Inter Miami are currently at the bottom of the MLS table. After securing a deal for Messi, the club's co-owner, Jorge Mas, recently teased three more signings, sending fans into a frenzy.