Messi congratulates Dembele on the Ballon d'Or: who among Ukrainians has received the award.

According to inkorr.com: Lionel Messi congratulated PSG forward Ousmane Dembele on receiving the Ballon d'Or, stating:

“Incredible Us. Congratulations, I am so happy for you. You deserve it.”

Messi's success and Ukrainian players' awards

Messi already has eight Ballon d'Or awards to his name.

This prestigious award was established in 1956 by the French publication France Football. Among Ukrainian footballers, Taras Shevchenko, Oleg Blokhin, and Igor Belanov have been honored with this distinction.

Qualifying round for the World Cup 2026

In the second round of the qualifying matches for the 2026 World Cup, the Ukrainian national football team drew with Azerbaijan, finishing the match with a score of 1:1. The next match will be against Iceland on October 10. Earlier, the team suffered a defeat in the match against France, losing 0:2.

During the important match against France, Ukrainian fans supported the team by displaying a banner that read “Fortress of Europe”.

Lionel Messi congratulated Ousmane Dembele on his new award, while he himself has already won eight Ballon d'Ors. Ukrainian football legends Taras Shevchenko, Oleg Blokhin, and Igor Belanov have also received this prestigious award. The Ukrainian national team continues its struggle in the qualifying round for the 2026 World Cup, demonstrating strong play and receiving support from fans.