Barcelona and Argentina forward Lionel Messi has been named the European Footballer of the Year - winning the prestigious Ballon d'Or by a record margin from 2008 winner Cristiano Ronaldo.

Messi, 22, was widely tipped to land the accolade after helping La Blaugrana win an an unprecedented treble last season as Pep Guardiola's men won the Liga title, the Copa del Rey and the UEFA Champions League.

The Argentine scored an amazing 38 goals in 51 games, including including a header in the 2-0 final defeat of Manchester United in the European Cup final in Rome, as well as contributing 16 assists during the 2008/09 campaign.

The scampering playmaker, who becomes the sixth Barca player to take the award but the first for four years - since Brazilian star Ronaldinho, did not expect to pip his rivals by such a wide margin.

"Honestly, I knew that I was among the favourites because Barcelona had a fruitful year in 2009," he told French Football magazine.

"But I didn't expect to win with such a margin. The Golden Ball is very important to me.

"All the players who won it were great players, and some great players never won it."

Meanwhile, Messi's Barca team-mates past and present were also hailed with midfield duo Xavi and Andres Iniesta taking third and fourth respectively, while Samuel Eto'o, who left Barca to join Inter Milan in the summer, was fifth.

Ballon d'Or Top 10:

1. Lionel Messi (Barcelona), 473 points

2. Cristiano Ronaldo (Real Madrid), 233

3. Xavi (Barcelona), 170

4. Andres Iniesta (Barcelona), 149

5. Samuel Eto'o (Inter Milan), 75

6. Kaka (Real Madrid), 58

7. Zlatan Ibrahimovic (Barcelona), 50

8. Wayne Rooney (Manchester United), 35

9. Didier Drogba (Chelsea), 33

10. Steven Gerrard (Liverpool), 32