World Cup finalists Lionel Messi and Kylian Mbappe featured on FIFA’s Best Men’s Player shortlist, but there was no room for Cristiano Ronaldo.

The recent Al-Nassr signing did not feature in FIFA’s list of 14 players who are up for the award, which takes a look back at the best performers from the previous calendar year.

2022 witnessed a number of memorable moments at club and international levels. From Bayern’s record 10th straight Bundesliga and Erling Haaland’s rampant start to life in England, to Senegal’s first Africa Cup of Nations triumph and a first final-four World Cup finish for an African side with Morocco in Qatar.

A year of fine footballing action closed with Lionel Messi finally getting his hands on the World Cup trophy, but will that be enough for the Argentine to win FIFA’s esteemed individual award?

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From the list of candidates to how and when the winner is decided, GOAL takes you through all there is to know. And you can read up on all of the other awards and nominees here.

Who are the 2022 FIFA Best Men’s Player Award nominees?

The list of 14 candidates for the 2022 award includes a mixture of familiar faces and relative newcomers.

Messi and Mbappe feature alongside Ballon d’Or winner Karim Benzema, while there are inclusions for youngsters Jude Bellingham and Achraf Hakimi.

While Ronaldo is a notable omission from the list, perhaps the most surprising inclusion is Manchester City’s Julian Alvarez, who dazzled in Qatar but only joined the English giants over half-way through the calendar year.

The full list of the 2022 FIFA best men’s player award nominees is as follows: