10 undeserved Superior Player of the Match recipients
Having the Superior Player of the Match winners decided by fans’ votes could be one of the most interesting moves by FIFA in the ongoing World Cup, because some of the recipients have clearly been undeserving.
Football awards have in recent years become a popularity contest, and if the analysts are not getting it right, can the fans, who decided based on pure emotion and favouritism, do any better? Surely not.
There have been many shocking recipients of the prize so far, one of whom was England’s Jude Bellingham, who clearly stated that he didn’t deserve the award and that it should have been given to an opposition player.
In the wake of his comments, we take a look at 10 undeserving Superior Player of the Match Winners so far at the 2026 FIFA World Cup in North America.
10 undeserved Superior Player of the Match Winners
1. Federico Valverde vs. Saudi Arabia
Federico Valverde’s decision as the Superior Player of the match winner against Saudi Arabia is one of the most baffling, because the Uruguay captain stood out, but as one of those not deserving of the award.
Teammate Maxi Araujo was the highest rated in the match, while the duo of Rodrigo Bentancur and Mathias Olivera also had good outings. Saudi Arabia goalkeeper Mohammed Al Uwais could have easily won it, but an error that led to Uruguay’s equalizer cost him.
2. Nestroy Irankuda vs. Turkiye
Apart from scoring a well-taken opener, Nestroy Irankuda didn’t really have that good a game against Turkiye to warrant winning the Superior Player of the Match award ahead of several teammates.
The real star of the show was goalkeeper Patrick Beach, who made eight saves to keep the Turks at bay, while either Paul Okon-Engstler or Connor Metcalfe, who also both registered goal involvement and were effective all through, would have also been more deserving.
3. Vinicius Jr. vs Morocco
It was a game that left many talking about the brilliance of young midfielder Ayyoub Bouaddi, who ran the show against Brazil’s tough-tackling duo of Bruno Guimaraes and Casemiro, making them chase shadows all game.
Yet, Vinicius Jr. was voted as the Superior Player of the Match despite his only real positive contribution being the equalizer, whereas he performed poorly in other aspects, including failing to complete one of eight dribble attempts.
4. Virgil van Dijk vs. Japan
Although the Netherlands captain was on the score sheet, his defensive performance was underwhelming, and he should have done better to prevent Japan’s late equalizer that denied the Orange a winning start.
Ryan Gravencberch, who assisted both of the Netherlands’ goals or one of Japan’s duo of Daichi Kamada and Keito Nakamura, was much better on the night, and awarding the Superior Player of the Match award to any of the three wouldn’t have raised eyebrows.
5. Michael Olise vs. Senegal
Having a good performance should not guarantee winning the Superior Player of the Match award, especially when there is someone with a better showing on the same team, the winning team.
That was the case with Michael Olise winning the award ahead of teammate Kylian Mbappé in France’s opening game of the 2026 FIFA World Cup. It should have gone to Mbappé, who scored twice, the opener, and the third to conquer Senegal’s beliefs.
6. Ali Iyad Olwan vs. Austria
Despite his team losing by three goals to one, Ali Iyad Olwan was surprisingly picked as the Superior Player of the Match, making him the first man on the losing side of a match to pick up the award at full-time in the 2026 World Cup.
Maybe the fans had forgotten a certain Xaver Schlager, who assisted the opening goal and was withdrawn around the hour mark, because no one in the game had more influence, or stood up to his numbers.
7. Antoine Semenyo vs. Panama
On his first international cap at a major tournament for Ghana, Caleb Yirenkyi was denied a perfect end to what was a complete performance on a night where he even scored the lone goal to help his country off to a winning start.
The Superior Player of the Match award went to teammate Antoine Semenyo, who had a poor game and did nothing of worth to highlight, whereas Yirenkyi was dominant in duels, dribbles, and the decisive touch.
8. Folarin Balogun vs. Australia
Maybe the fans were still hungover from his brilliance in the opening game win over Panama, but Folarin Balogun was no Superior Player of the Match award recipient in the second game against Australia, but what do Americans know about football?
Alex Freeman could have been awarded for his vital second goal that opened up a gap between the two teams, while Tyler Adams and Malick Tillman also did well to be acknowledged as the best players in the match.
9. Jude Bellingham vs. Ghana
Jude Bellingham did not mince words at full-time, clearly stating that he did not deserve the award, and that it should have gone to a Ghanaian player for how well they defended to get away with a clean sheet and hold off the Three Lions.
He was right. Ghanaian goalkeeper Benjamin Aware had a game to remember with three saves to keep England at bay, while Gideon Mensah, too, who had 16 defensive contributions, played a vital role in the point. But the true star of the show was England’s Declan Rice.
10. Cristian Martinez vs. Croatia
Another player to win the Superior Player of the Match award despite being on the losing side, but there were a lot of players superior to Cristian Martinez during the course of Panama’s 1-0 defeat to Croatia.
Josip Stanisic, Ante Budimir, Luka Modric, and Martin Baturina, to mention but a few from the winning team, while Yoel Barcenas was also slightly better amongst his own teammates.
Although Martinez was eye-catching on the flanks, it amounted to nothing as his team suffered a defeat that may well end their FIFA World Cup adventure
