‘Wherever you are, this is also for you. Happy birthday, Diego,’ said Messi before he received a heartwarming applause from the crowd.

Messi was joined on the stage by his wife Antonela and their three sons Thiago, Mateo, and Ciro as he accepted the award.

Lionel Messi was joined on stages by his sons while accepting the Ballon d’Or award Monday

During his acceptance speech Messi wished the legendary Diego Maradona happy birthday

The late Argentine legend Maradona died from a heart attack back in November of 2020

His son Ciro at one point attempted to hold the 33lb trophy before handing it back to his father.

Messi was presented the trophy by Inter Miami co-owner David Beckham who helped engineer the move that changed the landscape of Major League Soccer.

The Miami forward was also named a finalist for MLS Newcomer of the Year after leading the club to a surprising victory in the Inaugural MLS Leagues Cup.

A large part of Messi’s resume for the season that earned him his eighth Ballon d’Or was the fantastic job he did leading Argentina to a World Cup Trophy this year.

Messi beat out Manchester City striker Errling Haaland, who ended up winning the Gerd Muller Trophy for highest scoring male in 2022-23 with 56 goals.

PSG superstar Kylian Mbappe finished third in the Ballon d’Or race and finished one goal short of Haaland in the race for the Gerd Muller Trophy.