Did Cristiano, Messi and Yamal steal the efforts of their colleagues? Dark scenes behind the crowning stars

Player of the game awards are no longer going quietly at the 2026 World Cup. Flashy names appear on the podium many times without even scoring, and the decisions are surprising, prompting fans and teams to ask: who really picks the best? And what goes on behind the scenes at the tournament’s most controversial awards ceremony?

According to the newspaper, the scene has become familiar.come onSpanish. In the match against Austria, Lamine Yamal was recognized as the best, although he did not score a goal and participated in only part of the match, and Oyarzabal scored two goals and left empty-handed.

Also, Cristiano Ronaldo won the award against Croatia after a limited appearance, prompting the Croatian national team to officially protest what he described as an “unintelligible decision”.

The numbers reveal a striking pattern. Vinicius Junior won the award in 3 out of 4 matches, Lionel Messi in 2 out of 3, and Haaland, Mbappe and Cristiano in 2 out of 4. As for Lamine Yamal, the least decorated among them, he has won once in 4 matches despite not scoring a goal.

The source of controversy is not just FIFA’s technical committee, which is headed by Arsene Wenger and includes an elite group of former players, responsible for monitoring and evaluating all of the tournament’s matches. Rather, it goes beyond the nature of the award itself, as it is sponsored by an international beverage company and is usually presented by an influencer or celebrity.

This commercial link has opened the door to wide speculation, as the newspaper notes that many voices indicate that the sponsoring company may be interested in the biggest international stars appearing as award winners, given their huge marketing value and the spread of their images around the world, at the expense of lesser-known players, even if they are the most influential on the field.

While the World Cup proves its high artistic value with the brilliance of its stars, the series of awards awarded to them remains in question. The decisions, described as “strange” and “difficult to explain”, have sparked widespread debate in recent days and put the criteria for choosing the best under the microscope.