Football
ESPN staff 9y

World Cup final photo of Lionel Messi eyeing trophy wins prize

A photograph of Lionel Messi looking longingly at the World Cup trophy has been voted as the best sports image of 2014.

The photo shows Messi eyeing the golden trophy in the aftermath of Argentina's 1-0 loss to Germany in the 2014 World Cup final at the Maracana Stadium.

Bao Tailiang captured the moment for Chengdu Economic Daily and his work won first prize in the Sports Singles category of the 2015 World Press Photo Contest.

The Chinese photographer's image won the award ahead of pictures of the New York Giants' Odell Beckham catching one-handed for a touchdown against the Dallas Cowboys and Australian cricketer Phillip Hughes being helped by his teammates after sustaining a blow to the head which later proved fatal.

Messi and his teammates were beaten in extra time as Mario Gotze scored the winner with seven minutes remaining.

The Barcelona forward scored four goals for Argentina at the tournament in Brazil and was awarded the Golden Ball for his performances.

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