Lionel Messi | TIME Athlete of the Year 2023

That this moment unfolded, on July 21, 2023, in Fort Lauderdale still feels surreal. Lionel Messi, in his first game wearing a pink Inter Miami jersey, was awarded a free kick in the final seconds of his Major League Soccer (MLS) debut. Messi placed the ball on the grass. Kim Kardashian and LeBron James were in the crowd that night, but not a soul was looking at them. The ball left Messi’s left foot, and as the shot began to curl around a wall of a half-dozen Cruz Azul players, Yedlin, who was standing on the field behind Messi, spread his arms in a victory pose. Lionel Messi is TIME's 2023 Athlete of the Year. Read more: https://ti.me/470e5TP Subscribe to TIME Breaking News YouTube Channel ►►: https://ti.me/3ROMUXY Subscribe to TIME’s YouTube channel ►► http://ti.me/subscribe-time Subscribe to TIME: https://ti.me/3E3UCqt Get the day’s top headlines to your inbox, curated by TIME editors: http://ti.me/the-brief Follow us: Twitter: https://ti.me/3xTVwSk Facebook: https://ti.me/3xWI2Fg Instagram: https://ti.me/3dO9Rcc