Best Goal of the Season: Odds for the Puskás Award Winner
Voting on the FIFA website has concluded, and soon a panel of experts will decide the most beautiful goal of the season. In our review, we explore trends in the Puskás Award, this year's top favourites, and, of course, the odds and best betting options.
Seven years ago, the world was shaken by a scandal. The Puskás Award was given to Mohamed Salah. His sharp-angle shot was decent, but that same year, Cristiano Ronaldo seemed to defy human limits, delivering an overhead masterpiece into Buffon's net.
FIFA decided the award was starting to resemble the Eurovision Song Contest too much. Since then, the voting rules have changed. Fans now essentially create the shortlist, while experts make the final decision.
Puskas Award Betting Odds
Despite the seemingly subjective nature of choosing the most attractive goal, there are undeniable trends. For instance, the dominance of Europeans and Latin Americans.
Top 5 Contenders for 2024
This year, the Puskás Award is almost unique. Among the contenders, there isn't a single Brazilian. Since the award was established in 2009, this is only the fifth time this has happened. The magicians of the ball are the record holders for the most wins.
Most Awards won by nationality
Country |
Wins |
Years |
Brazil |
3 |
2011, 2015, 2023 |
Portugal |
1 |
2009 |
Turkey |
1 |
2010 |
In fact, Brazilians are the only ones to have won the award more than once. The other 12 nations each have just one win.
Overhead Goals
The main rivals of the Brazilians, as usual, are the Argentinians. They are nominated almost every year. The record-holder is Lionel Messi, who has been nominated an incredible seven times but has never conquered this peak.
The bookmakers' top favourite, Alejandro Garnacho, is an Argentinian. His strike against Everton during a Premier League match nearly drove the commentator mad, who began singing in sheer excitement.
Fans absolutely adore bicycle kicks, scissor kicks, and overhead strikes in mid-air. Around 40% of Puskás Awards have been given for such goals. Garnacho's effort was even more remarkable as he struck a ball that was already drifting away.
When discussing Manchester United in recent years, jokes are almost unavoidable. Even in our own editorial office, we teased the Red Devils, suggesting that André Onana’s potential Golden Glove might be the only trophy the club could hope for. Turns out, it might not be the only one.
Two years ago, the Puskás Award went to a Polish amputee footballer for an incredible overhead goal. Cynics were quick to suggest that inclusivity standards now extend even to Manchester United in its current state. But in all seriousness, Garnacho’s goal is undeniably one of the most spectacular moments of the season.
The second bookmakers’ favorite is Yassine Benzia, with yet another overhead kick. The Algerian, who once played for France's youth teams, set himself up by flicking the ball into the air before smashing it into South Africa’s net.
However, Benzia’s strike came from inside the box, unlike the “rocket” from another Argentinian, Walter Bou. Adding to its appeal, Bou’s goal was a game-saver for his team, Lanús, scored in the dying seconds of their match against Tigre in the national championship.
Volley Strikes
The second most popular method of scoring among Puskás Award winners. Hassan Al Haydos delivered a stunning volley from a corner kick, sending the ball into China’s net during the Asian Cup. Incidentally, Qatar went on to win the tournament.
In the case of Michael Chirinos’ goal during the Costa Rica vs. Honduras match in the Concacaf Nations League playoff, the build-up play made it even more remarkable. Adding a special twist, this was Chirinos’ first goal for the senior Honduras team — and it came against none other than Keylor Navas.
Rabona
The Puskás Award has once been given for a rabona goal. In 2021, Erik Lamela, yet another Argentine, stunned Arsenal with a brilliant rabona strike in a Premier League match.
This season, two contenders have scored similar goals. Denis Omedi’s effort is one of those goals you need to rewatch to fully grasp what just happened. However, the fact that it came in the Ugandan Super 8 tournament — not the most prestigious of competitions — could be a potential drawback.
We like Jayden Philogene. First of all, it’s the first-ever Championship goal to be nominated for the Puskás Award. Secondly, it’s almost the same goal as Salah’s, scored from a sharp angle after a skillful dribble — but this time, it’s a rabona!
Player to Win Award
Long-range Strikes
Let’s be honest, goals from midfield are more about extravagance than pure beauty. While Federico Dimarco's goal was scored in the competitive Serie A, Terry Antonis' strike was the seventh unanswered goal against Western Sydney Wanderers in the Australian A-League.
And if in 2021 Patrik Schick didn’t win the award for his goal against Scotland at the Euros, then the hopes are quite low in this case as well.
Player to Win Award
Backheel and Solo Runs
In 2017, Olivier Giroud scored an incredible backheel goal against Crystal Palace. That goal certainly deserved the award. Paul Onuachu was fantastic in a Turkish Süper Lig match, but his effort doesn’t quite match up to Giroud’s brilliance. It’s unlikely they’ll award a prize for a pale imitation.
Finally, the insane solo run by Mohammed Kudus! In a Europa League match, he began his run from his own half, dribbling past a crowd of Freiburg players, reminding us of the goals scored by Neymar and Son Heung-min, for which they won the award in the past.
Puskás Award Prediction
Formally, the jury is not supposed to consider the status of the tournament where the goal was scored. The only requirement is that the match must be official. However, in practice, preference is given to more challenging competitions. After all, scoring a simple goal in such tournaments is harder, let alone a masterpiece. Yes, last year the award went to Guilherme Madruga from Brazil’s Serie B, but it’s unlikely this will be repeated for a second year in a row. Goals in meaningless matches, especially in routs, also lose their appeal in the eyes of the judges.
For these reasons, goals by Antonis from the Australian league and Jayden Philogene will almost certainly be excluded. Not only is the latter from the Championship, but his goal was also somewhat assisted by a mistake from the opponent. While not direct, this is a negative factor.
We’ve already mentioned how much the award judges love overhead strikes. Not only did Garnacho and Bou score in this manner, but both are also Argentinians. Year after year, the award seems not to favor this nation, despite their dominance in nominations. It seems that this time, it may be time for compensation.
Among the leagues, the Premier League is the main supplier of winners, with representatives winning approximately once every four years. Since 2017, two-thirds of the awards have gone to Britain, which further supports the bookmaker’s favorite — Garnacho.
The main competitor to Garnacho and Bou, whose goal is considered by many to be more aesthetically perfect, is a representative from another Premier League team — Mohammed Kudus of West Ham. His wild solo run harks back to the days of Maradona and may end a streak of two consecutive awards for overhead kicks.
Player to Win Award
Real Madrid
Pachuca
Arsenal
Crystal Palace
Southampton
Liverpool
Newcastle
Brentford
Atalanta
Cezena
