Cristiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi, and Mohamed Salah are among the star names who will be vying for the Dubai Global Soccer Awards, which is set to take place at Expo 2020 Dubai on December 27.
Organised by Dubai Sports Council, the event at Al Wasl Plaza will see icons of international football and other luminaries at the Dubai International Sports Conference and later the Globe Soccer Awards ceremony.
This edition of the Soccer Awards has 14 categories, including the first for the 'Best Women’s Club of the Year', along with the 'Best Women's Player of the Year' award, demonstrating the steady growth that professional women's football has shown.
Among those nominated are winners of this year’s European and South American titles Italy, Argentina and Chelsea, along with winners of national tournaments, including Manchester City, Atletico Madrid, Bayern Munich, Inter Milan and Lille.
The spotlight will, however, be on the men's player of the year category, with nominees that Dubai has celebrated in the past – namely Ronaldo, Messi, Robert Lewandowski – and star names like Kylian Mbappe, Neymar Jr. and Salah.
The coach of the year category has 14 candidates. Among them are the coaches of the European championship final - Italy’s Roberto Mancini and England’s Gareth Southgate- and the equally illustrious Champions League finalists, Thomas Tuchel and Pep Guardiola.
The club of the year category has almost the entire European football elite represented with nine nominees from England, Spain, Germany, Italy and France.
“The scene on the evening of December 27 will be dazzling and full of icons of international football, hosted at the most famous Dome of Stars, the Al Wasl Plaza, in the heart of Expo 2020 Dubai,” Saeed Hareb, secretary general of Dubai Sports Council, said.
“We are pleased that this special event, which combines the Dubai International Sports Conference and the prestigious Dubai Globe Soccer Awards, will be the closing scene of 2021, the year which witnessed major international football activities for the most famous sport in the world.
“Football fans in the UAE, Expo 2020 Dubai guests and hundreds of millions of people from countries all over the world will be watching the most awaited global event and will celebrate the victory of their favorite football stars.”
The Dubai Globe Soccer Awards will be broadcast live via satellite and streamed live worldwide. More information will be shared through Globe Soccer’s social media channels.
