Cannavaro named FIFA World Player of the Year

Fabio Cannavaro capped off an impressive year Monday with yet another award.

The Italian star was proud to become the first defender to be named FIFA World Player of the Year after collecting the award at the annual gala ceremony in Zurich. The accolade caps off an outstanding year for the Italy and Real Madrid centre-half, who captained his country to World Cup glory this summer and was presented with the Ballon D’Or for winning the European Footballer of the Year award in November. He would have been able to add a Serie A winner’s medal to his haul if not for the Italian match-fixing scandal, which saw his former club Juventus stripped of their title and relegated to Serie B.