Lionel Messi gives away his eighth Ballon d’Or trophy just months after beating Erling Haaland to the award in a classy gesture ahead of Inter Miami’s MLS return

Lionel Messi has given away his latest Ballon d’Or trophy, just months after controversially beating the likes of Erling Haaland and Kylian Mbappe to the prize.

Messi was crowned the world’s best player for the eighth time in October following his heroics with Argentina at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.

The Barcelona legend led his country to glory in the Middle East, where he claimed the one major honor that had eluded him during his iconic career.

And almost seven months after winning the World Cup, he parted ways with French team Paris Saint-Germain and headed to the United States after sealing a lucrative move to Inter Miami.

In his first four months with David Beckham’s franchise, Messi scored 11 goals in 14 games as he inspired them to a first-ever Leagues Cup trophy.

Messi won his eighth trophy after his success for both club and country with Inter Miami (left) and Argentina (right)

Despite his success for both club and country, fans were outraged when Messi was awarded his eighth Ballon d’Or last year, with some claiming Manchester City great Haaland deserved more.

However, four months after winning the prize, the 36-year-old has given away his latest individual prize.

According to Spanish journalist Miquel BlazquezMessi has gifted his Ballon d’Or trophy to Barcelona despite not winning it with his former club.

In doing so, Barca can place the eighth accolade of their all-time greatest former player alongside the other seven listed in their club museum.

Messi built a legacy as arguably the greatest player in football history at Camp Nou, winning ten Spanish titles and four Champions Leagues while scoring an astonishing 672 goals in 778 games.

He is currently gearing up for the start of the 2024 MLS season, with Miami’s first appearance against Real Salt Lake on Wednesday night.

Earlier this week, Messi was forced to come out and deny that he skipped a recent friendly in Hong Kong for political reasons.

Chinese state media, politicians and Hong Kong fans reacted angrily when the Argentine forward came off the bench during a friendly match in Tokyo three days later.

The 36-year-old is said to have donated it to former club Barcelona to place in their museum

Since then, Hangzhou and Beijing have said they will not host Argentina matches scheduled for March as the fallout continues and now Messi has spoken in an attempt to diffuse the situation.

“I’ve read and heard a lot of things said after the Hong Kong match. “I wanted to record this video and give you the true version so that no one has to keep reading false stories,” Messi said in a video on Weibo.

“I’ve heard people say I didn’t want to play for political reasons and many other reasons that are completely untrue.

“If that had been the case, I wouldn’t have even traveled to Japan or visited China as I have done so many times. Since the beginning of my career, I have had a very close and special relationship with China.’