El País King of European Soccer (alternative: El País European Player of the Year) was an annual football award given by Uruguayan newspaper El País to the best footballer in Europe. It had been decided by several European sports experts, critics and journalists based on votes. Any player from a European team was eligible, regardless their country of origin. It was first awarded in 1991 with French Jean-Pierre Papin having been the inaugural winner. The last winner was Argentine Lionel Messi in 2012. Messi and Zinedine Zidane are the record winners of the award with four wins each.
Winners
Source:
Zinedine Zidane (left) and Lionel Messi hold the record for the most wins, with 4 each.
Most wins by player
- Consecutive wins
- Lionel Messi is the only player in history to win the award in 4 consecutive years (2009, 2010, 2011, 2012).
- Zinedine Zidane and Ronaldinho won the award in 3 successive years (2001, 2002, 2003 and 2004, 2005, 2006, respectively).
- Brazilian Ronaldo won the award twice in a row (1996, 1997).
European Coach of the Year
See also
- Onze Mondial European Footballer of the Year
- World Soccer Player of the Year
- The Guardian 100 Best Male Footballers in the World
- FourFourTwo Player of the Year Award
- FIFA World Player of the Year
- ESM Team of the Season
References
- "Messi and Del Bosque crowned the 'Kings of Europe' | English". AS.com. 30 December 2012. Archived from the original on 21 July 2018.
- "European Player and Team of the Year". www.rsssf.org. Retrieved 13 February 2023.
- "European Player, Team and Coach of the Year 1999". www.rsssf.org. Retrieved 13 February 2023.
- "European Player of the Year 2000". www.rsssf.org. Retrieved 13 February 2023.
- "European Player of the Year 2001". www.rsssf.org. Retrieved 13 February 2023.
- "European Player and Coach of the Year 2002". www.rsssf.org. Retrieved 13 February 2023.
- "European Player and Coach of the Year 2003". www.rsssf.org. Retrieved 13 February 2023.
- "European Player and Coach of the Year 2004". www.rsssf.org. Retrieved 13 February 2023.
- "European Player and Coach of the Year 2005". www.rsssf.org. Retrieved 13 February 2023.
- "European Player and Coach of the Year 2006". www.rsssf.org. Retrieved 13 February 2023.
- "European Player and Coach of the Year 2007". www.rsssf.org. Retrieved 13 February 2023.
- "European Player and Coach of the Year 2008". www.rsssf.org. Retrieved 13 February 2023.
- "Messi and Del Bosque crowned the 'Kings of Europe' | English | AS.com". 21 July 2018. Archived from the original on 21 July 2018. Retrieved 13 February 2023.
External links
- Original edition site: https://www.elpais.com.uy/
- English edition site: https://elpais.com/elpais/inenglish.html