Lionel Messi has been somewhat controversially included on the shortlist for the best men's player prize at the 2024 Fifa Best Awards.
The 37-year-old Argentina and Barcelona legend is seeing out his career in Major League Soccer with Inter Miami, and failed to make the top 30 for the far more prestigious Ballon d'Or earlier this year.
Messi, who has won a record eight Ballons d'Or in the past, is the only player on the list playing outside of Europe.
He scored 20 goals as Inter Miami won the Eastern Conference but was on the losing side in the MLS Cup play-offs as Atlanta United pulled off a surprise result.
Fifa's determination to include arguably the world's most famous player in their competitions was demonstrated when they rewarded Inter Miami's regular season success with a spot at the expanded Club World Cup, delivering a snub to both Western Conference champions LAFC and whoever is eventually crowned MLS Cup champions on December 7.
There is no spot on Fifa's shortlist for Messi's great rival Cristiano Ronaldo, who led the scoring charts in the Saudi Pro League with Al Nassr last season. There is also no place for in-form Liverpool forward Mohamed Salah, the leading player from the Arabic world and Mena region.
In fact, there are only two nominees from the Premier League, both from Manchester City, in 2024 Ballon d'Or winner Rodri and striker Erling Haaland.
The pair have been recognised after City became the first team in English top-flight history to win four league titles in a row.
Will Vinicius Jr get his Ballon d'Or payback?
Real Madrid and Brazil winger Vinicius Jr is one of 11 nominees for the prize, which is dominated by players from Spain's La Liga.
Vinicius had been heavily tipped to win the Ballon d'Or this year only to find out at the last minute he had been beaten to the prize – voted for by journalists – by City's Rodri.
Such was his disappointment, both he and his club Real Madrid decided to boycott the ceremony in Paris. Vinicius will once again be among the favourites, and this time might land the individual accolade he clearly feels his performances deserve.
The award will be decided by an equally weighted split between fans, current captains and coaches of all women's and men's national teams, and media representatives.
Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola, who won coach of the year in 2023, is again nominated, alongside Real Madrid's Carlo Ancelotti, Bayer Leverkusen's Xabi Alonso, Argentina manager Lionel Scaloni and Spain national team coach Luis de la Fuente.
Arsenal's David Raya, Manchester City's Ederson and Aston Villa's Emiliano Martinez are among the nominees for the goalkeeper of the year award. Real Madrid's Andriy Lunin, Paris Saint-Germain's Gianluigi Donnarumma, AC Milan's Mike Maignan and Athletic Bilbao's Unai Simon are also in the running.
The ceremony is set to take place in January as the award takes into consideration the entire calendar year, unlike the Ballon d'Or, which now goes season by season.
A date has not been confirmed for the ceremony, but voting remains open for fans on Fifa's official website until December 10.
Best men’s player nominees
Dani Carvajal (Spain/Real Madrid)
Erling Haaland (Norway/Manchester City)
Federico Valverde (Uruguay/Real Madrid)
Florian Wirtz (Germany/Bayer Leverkusen)
Jude Bellingham (England/Real Madrid)
Kylian Mbappe (France/Paris Saint-Germain/Real Madrid)
Lamine Yamal (Spain/Barcelona)
Lionel Messi (Argentina/Inter Miami)
Rodri (Spain/Manchester City)
Toni Kroos (Germany/Real Madrid)
Vinicius Jr (Brazil/Real Madrid)
Best men’s coach nominees
Carlo Ancelotti (Real Madrid)
Lionel Scaloni (Argentina)
Luis de la Fuente (Spain)
Pep Guardiola (Manchester City)
Xabi Alonso (Bayer Leverkusen)
Best men’s goalkeeper nominees
Andriy Lunin (Ukraine/Real Madrid)
David Raya (Spain/Arsenal)
Ederson (Brazil/Manchester City)
Emiliano Martinez (Argentina/Aston Villa)
Gianluigi Donnarumma (Italy/Paris Saint-Germain)
Mike Maignan (France/AC Milan)
Unai Simon (Spain/Athletic Bilbao)
Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week
The specs
Engine: Two permanent-magnet synchronous AC motors
Transmission: two-speed
Power: 671hp
Torque: 849Nm
Range: 456km
Price: from Dh437,900
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The specs
Engine: 5.0-litre supercharged V8
Transmission: Eight-speed auto
Power: 575bhp
Torque: 700Nm
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Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
Labour dispute
The insured employee may still file an ILOE claim even if a labour dispute is ongoing post termination, but the insurer may suspend or reject payment, until the courts resolve the dispute, especially if the reason for termination is contested. The outcome of the labour court proceedings can directly affect eligibility.
- Abdullah Ishnaneh, Partner, BSA Law
The Specs
Price, base Dh379,000
Engine 2.9-litre, twin-turbo V6
Gearbox eight-speed automatic
Power 503bhp
Torque 443Nm
On sale now
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Gifts exchanged
- King Charles - replica of President Eisenhower Sword
- Queen Camilla - Tiffany & Co vintage 18-carat gold, diamond and ruby flower brooch
- Donald Trump - hand-bound leather book with Declaration of Independence
- Melania Trump - personalised Anya Hindmarch handbag
Company profile
Name: Oulo.com
Founder: Kamal Nazha
Based: Dubai
Founded: 2020
Number of employees: 5
Sector: Technology
Funding: $450,000
Sholto Byrnes on Myanmar politics
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The specs
Engine: 4.0-litre, six-cylinder
Transmission: six-speed manual
Power: 395bhp
Torque: 420Nm
Price: from Dh321,200
On sale: now
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
How Alia's experiment will help humans get to Mars
Alia’s winning experiment examined how genes might change under the stresses caused by being in space, such as cosmic radiation and microgravity.
Her samples were placed in a machine on board the International Space Station. called a miniPCR thermal cycler, which can copy DNA multiple times.
After the samples were examined on return to Earth, scientists were able to successfully detect changes caused by being in space in the way DNA transmits instructions through proteins and other molecules in living organisms.
Although Alia’s samples were taken from nematode worms, the results have much bigger long term applications, especially for human space flight and long term missions, such as to Mars.
It also means that the first DNA experiments using human genomes can now be carried out on the ISS.
German intelligence warnings
- 2002: "Hezbollah supporters feared becoming a target of security services because of the effects of [9/11] ... discussions on Hezbollah policy moved from mosques into smaller circles in private homes." Supporters in Germany: 800
- 2013: "Financial and logistical support from Germany for Hezbollah in Lebanon supports the armed struggle against Israel ... Hezbollah supporters in Germany hold back from actions that would gain publicity." Supporters in Germany: 950
- 2023: "It must be reckoned with that Hezbollah will continue to plan terrorist actions outside the Middle East against Israel or Israeli interests." Supporters in Germany: 1,250
Source: Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution
The National Archives, Abu Dhabi
Founded over 50 years ago, the National Archives collects valuable historical material relating to the UAE, and is the oldest and richest archive relating to the Arabian Gulf.
Much of the material can be viewed on line at the Arabian Gulf Digital Archive - https://www.agda.ae/en
Company%20Profile
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