Alexia Putellas named 2022 Women’s BEST FIFA player

• The 2022 FIFA Best awards ceremony took place on Monday, February 27 2023
• Barcelona women’s start Alexia Putellas was named the BEST FIFA women’s player for the second year in a row
• Here are other winners in the women’s category at the 2022 FIFA Best awards

At the 2022 awards ceremony, Barcelona’s Alexia Putellas, who earned the award in 2021, defended her title as the Best FIFA Women’s Player.

Putellas is currently the reigning back-to-back Ballon d’Or winner for 2021 and 2022, and her most recent honour only strengthens her position as the world’s greatest female player.

The fact that the Spaniard hasn’t played since sustaining an ACL injury in June is astonishing. That put an end to her hopes of becoming the first Spanish captain to win a big international competition, but her performances for Barcelona up until that point had already had a profound impact on 2022.

Barcelona and Spain star Alexia Putellas was named the BEST FIFA Women’s player in 2022. | PHOTO: Goal |

Barcelona had a flawless season in Spain in 2021–2022, winning all of their games. The squad scored 159 goals while only giving up 11, and Putellas had her best individual season yet with 34 goals scored across all competitions.

To complete a domestic treble, the Catalans also easily took the Copa de la Reina and the Supercopa de Espana Femenina. They made it to their second straight Champions League final but lost to Lyon in a battle of real titans, falling one victory short of a quadruple.

Putellas won the FIFA award ahead of Beth Mead, who she had previously edged out for the Ballon d’Or and finished ahead of Alex Morgan, a rising American player.

In December, the 29-year-old midfielder accelerated her ACL recovery by starting to run on grass at Barcelona’s training facility, increasing the likelihood that she would be completely fit before the season’s end. Her support for the 15 players who declined to be called up by current Spain coach Jorge Vilda, however, leaves her World Cup participation in 2023 in question.

Due to their outstanding achievements at Euro 2022, four England stars were selected for the FIFA FIFPro Women’s World 11.

In addition to the best women’s player nominees Alexia Putellas and Alex Morgan, the starting squad also features the defenders Lucy Bronze and Leah Williamson, the midfielder Keira Walsh, and the attacker Beth Mead.

England women’s national team led by Beth Mead featured heavily in the FIFA FIFPro World 11 at the 2022 awards. | PHOTO: Aurelien Meunier |

Mead competed for the Best FIFA Women’s Player honour but was defeated by Spain and Barcelona standout Putellas.

Since the award’s inception in 2015, Wendie Renard of France has reached the XI seven times in a row. Both Morgan and Bronze made their fifth XI starts.

Lena Oberdorf, a star player for Germany, is the youngest competitor on both the men’s and women’s teams at just 21 years old.

Even though Mary Earps received the Best FIFA Women’s Goalkeeper honour, the Lyon and Chilean star Christiane Endler was able to retain her position as the best goalie.