International Football Federation (FIFA) revealed the surnames of three football players, one of whom will be recognized as the best footballer of 2016 on January 9th. In the list - no surprises: Lionel Messi ("Barcelona"), Cristiano Ronaldo (Madrid "Real") and Antoine Griezmann ("Atletico") are vying to become the best football player of the year. Interestingly, all three players are representatives of Spanish "La Liga" clubs. This once again demonstrates the strength of Spanish competitions. The main candidate to win the award is identified as C. Ronaldo, who with "Real" won the UEFA Champions League last season and became European champions with the Portuguese national team. A. Griezmann also had a very successful season last year. However, personal statistics do not favor the Frenchman, as the striker lost in the finals with both "Atletico" and the French national team to teams represented by C. Ronaldo. Five-time best player on the planet L. Messi with "Barca" won the "La Liga" and "Copa del Rey" trophies. As usual, he will compete with C. Ronaldo for the best player of the year award.
