After Lionel Messi won the prized Ballon d’Or in 2021, Cristiano Ronaldo got angry at the people who were in charge of the award and said they were lying.

Ronaldo still has five Ballon d’Or titles, but Messi is likely to pull even further ahead of him on October 30 when he wins his eighth title. At the beginning of the week, it was said that the great player for Inter Miami would win the award for 2023 after his amazing World Cup win with Argentina.

When Messi, 36, last won the famous golden ball, it was two years ago, when he beat Polish star Robert Lewandowski in a controversial game. That night, Ronaldo went on a rant on social media because organizer Pascal Ferre said the Portuguese player’s “only” goal in life was to win more Ballon d’Or awards than Messi.

The New York Times quoted Ferre, editor-in-chief of the magazine France Football, who gave the award: “Ronaldo has only one goal, and that is to retire with more Ballons d’Or than Messi. I know this because he told me.”

Ronaldo was angry about Ferre’s words, so he told him he was lying and said that he had always supported “sportsmanship.” “Today’s outcome explains why Pascal Ferre’s statements last week when he said that I told him my only goal was to end my career with more Golden Balls than Lionel Messi,” the former Manchester United star wrote on Instagram.

“Charles Ferre lied; he used my name to promote himself and the magazine he works for. This kind of lying by the person in charge of giving out such an important award is completely unacceptable. They show no respect for someone who has always respected France Football and the Ballon d’Or.

I told him I wasn’t going to the Gala because of a supposed lockdown that doesn’t exist, and he lied again today. As a person who has always believed in fair play and good sportsmanship, I always want to thank the winners. I do this because I’m never against anyone.

When I play, I always win for myself, the teams I play for, and the people who love me. I lost to everyone. My main goal in my work is to win national and international titles for my country’s national team and the clubs I play for.