The Argentine forward beat out Barcelona teammates Xavi Hernandez and Andres Iniesta for the renamed FIFA Golden Ball Award, which merged the FIFA player of the year with France Football's Golden Ball.
Messi received 22.65 percent of the votes cast by national team coaches and captains plus selected reporters. Iniesta followed with 17.36 percent and Xavi received 16.48 percent to finish third for the second straight year. All three finalists were part of Barcelona's La Masia youth academy.
Schaerlaeckens: In Esteemed Company
Lionel Messi joins an elite group of 10 players with his consecutive FIFA player of the year award. But it only confirmed what we already knew, writes ESPN.com's Leander Schaerlaeckens. Blog
Eight of the 20 winners of the FIFA award have come from Barcelona, which also won with Brazilians Romario (1994), Ronaldo (1996 and 1997), Rivaldo (1999) and Ronaldinho.
Barcelona also placed six players on the 11-man All-Star team announced by FIFA and the soccer union FIFPro, with Messi, Xavi and Iniesta joined by defenders Carles Puyol and Gerard Pique, and forward David Villa, who transfered from Valencia just before the World Cup.
Also on the team were Real Madrid goalkeeper Iker Castillas and forward Cristiano Ronaldo, and three Inter players: defenders Lucio and Maicon, and midfielder Wesley Snjeider.
The 23-year-old Messi helped Barcelona retain its Spanish league title. The Blaugrana lead the Spanish standings again this season.
"It's a very special day for me," Messi said through a translator.
The 23-year-old forward scored 58 goals for the Catalan club in 2010 but had a disappointing World Cup, where he failed to score for Argentina. Iniesta and Xavi helped Spain win its first World Cup title, with Iniesta scoring the overtime goal in the 1-0 win over the Netherlands in the final.
"I didn't expect to win it today," Messi said. "Already it's a source of happiness to be here with my friends and even more to win it."
U.S. coach Bob Bradley and captain Carlos Bocanegra both voted Xavi first, with Bradley picking Sneijder second and Messi third. Bocanegra selected Iniesta second and Sneijder third. Soccer America's Paul Kennedy, the only U.S. media voter, had Xavi first, followed by Messi and Sneijder.
Jose Mourinho was voted FIFA men's coach of the year after leading Inter Milan to the European Champions League, Serie A and Italian Cup titles.
Mourinho, the self-dubbed "Special One," received 35.92 percent and beat Spain coach Vicente del Bosque (33.08) and Barcelona coach Pep Guardiola (8.45) in the inaugural prize. The Portuguese coach left Inter after the 2009-10 season to become coach of Real Madrid.
Bradley selected Mourinho first, followed by Del Bosque and Chelsea manager Carlo Ancelotti, while Bocanegra had Guardiola first, followed by Mourinho and Del Bosque. Kennedy voted Del Bosque first, followed by Mourinho and Germany coach Joachim Loew.
Brazilian forward Marta won the FIFA women's player of the year award for the fifth straight year. She received 38.2 percent, beating out Germany's Birgit Prinz (15.18) and Kosovo-born Lira Bajramaj (9.96). Marta was rewarded for her MVP season with the Gold Pride of the Women's Professional Soccer league in the United States.
Germany national team coach Silvia Neid won the inaugural women's coaching award with 24.06 percent, finishing ahead of Maren Meinert of Germany's world champion under-20 team (18.26) and U.S. women's team coach Pia Sundhage (11.68).
Hamit Altintop won the Puskas Award for most beautiful goal in 2010 for his volleyed shot for Turkey against Kazakhstan in a 2012 European Championship qualifier. The Bayern Munich midfielder connected with a right-footed shot from yards out after a left-flank corner had looped directly into his path.
The award is named after the late Hungarian and Real Madrid great Ferenc Puskas.
Haitian soccer received the FIFA fair play award for its recovery from an earthquake which devastated the Caribbean island last January.
The FIFA presidential award was made to Archbishop Desmond Tutu in recognition of South Africa's organization of the World Cup.
