Haaland was favorite to win after scoring 52 times in his first season with City as the English team won the treble of Champions League, Premier League and FA Cup.
However, after receiving the same number of points from a scoring system based on votes from national team captains, coaches, journalists and fans, Messi was crowned the winner due to more first-choice nominations.
Messi’s former club teammate Kylian Mbappe finished third.
Bonamati’s selection as the best women’s player was less controversial as she made a clean sweep of the individual awards after helping Spain lift the World Cup in 2023 and Barcelona to Champions League glory.
The 25-year-old also won the Ballon d’Or, the World Cup Golden Ball and the UEFA Player of the Year award in recent months.