Ballon d'Or

The Ballon d'Or (French pronunciation: [balɔ̃ dɔʁ] ; lit.'Golden Ball') is an annual football award presented by French news magazine France Football since 1956. Between 2010 and 2015, in an agreement with FIFA, the award was temporarily merged with the FIFA World Player of the Year (founded in 1991) and known as the FIFA Ballon d'Or. That partnership ended in 2016, and the award reverted to the Ballon d'Or, while FIFA also reverted to its own separate annual award The Best FIFA Men's Player. The recipients of the joint FIFA Ballon d'Or are considered as winners by both award organisations. The Ballon d’Or is generally regarded as football’s most prestigious and valuable individual award.[2] Nevertheless, critics have described the award as a "popularity contest", criticising its voting process and for systematically singling out an individual in a team sport.[3][4][5][6][7][8]

Ballon d'Or
Ballon d'Or trophy
Date1956 (1956)
CountryFrance
Presented byFrance Football
First awarded1956
Current holderFrance Karim Benzema
(1st award)
Most awardsArgentina Lionel Messi
(7 awards)
Most nominationsPortugal Cristiano Ronaldo
(18 nominations)[1]
Websitefrancefootball.fr

Conceived by sports writers Gabriel Hanot and Jacques Ferran, the Ballon d'Or award honours the male player deemed to have performed the best over the previous year, based on voting by football journalists, from 1956 to 2006.[9] Originally, it was awarded only to players from Europe and widely known as the European Footballer of the Year award. In 1995, the Ballon d'Or was expanded to include all players from any origin that have been active at European clubs.[10][11]

After 2007, coaches and captains of national teams were also given the right to vote.[9] The award became a global prize in 2007 with all professional footballers from around the world being eligible.[12] In 2022, France Football modified the rules for the Ballon d'Or. They changed the timing so that awards were given not for achievements during a calendar year, but for a football season.[13] It was also decided that only those countries in the top 100 of the FIFA World Ranking would be allowed to vote.[13]

History

Stanley Matthews of England was the inaugural winner of the Ballon d'Or.[14] Prior to 2007, the award was generally known as the continental European Footballer of the Year award in English language and much international media. Even after 2007, it was usually identified with and referred to by that name because of its origin as a European award, until it was merged with FIFA's World Player award cementing its new worldwide claim.[15][16][17][18] Liberia's George Weah, the only African recipient, became the first non-European to win the award in 1995, the year that rules of eligibility were changed.[11] Ronaldo of Brazil became the first South American winner two years later.[11]

Lionel Messi has won the award a record seven times, followed by Cristiano Ronaldo with five. Three players have won the award three times each: Johan Cruyff, Michel Platini, and Marco van Basten. With seven awards each, Dutch, German, Argentine, Portuguese and French players have won the most Ballons d'Or. Players from Germany (1972, 1981) and the Netherlands (1988) occupied the top-three top spots in a single year (a feat achieved only three times in history). German (1972) and Italian (1988–1990) clubs achieved the same feat, including two individual years dominated by AC Milan players (1988, 1989), a unique record until Spanish clubs experienced an unforeseen dominance (2009–2012, 2015, 2016) and Barcelona (2010) became the second club to occupy the top-three. Two Spanish clubs, Barcelona and Real Madrid, also lead the ranking for producing the most winners, with 12 wins each.[19]

Between 2010 and 2015 inclusive, the award was merged with a similar one, the FIFA World Player of the Year award, to create the FIFA Ballon d'Or, which was awarded to the world's best male player before FIFA and France Football decided not to continue the merging agreement.[20] After 2011, UEFA created the UEFA Best Player in Europe Award to maintain the tradition of the original Ballon d'Or of specifically honouring a football player from Europe.[21]

In 2020, the Group L'Équipe, to which France Football belongs, decided that no award would be given for the year due to the COVID-19 pandemic cutting short the seasons of football clubs worldwide.[22] The widespread public opinion is that the 2020 award should have been given to Robert Lewandowski.[23][24][25]

The award shows a bias in favor of attacking players, which has increased in recent years, especially after 2007.[9] Over time, the award has gone to a more exclusive set of leagues and clubs.[9] Prior to 1995, 10 leagues supplied Ballon d'Or winners, whereas only England, France, Germany, Italy, and Spain have supplied winners since 1995.[9] Spain's La Liga has the most Ballon d'Or winners.[9] Barcelona and Real Madrid have supplied the most Ballon d'Or winners since 1995.[9]

In 2022, France Football modified the rules for the Ballon d'Or. They changed the timing so that awards were given not for achievements during a calendar year, but for a football season.[13] It was also decided that only those countries in the top 100 of the FIFA World Ranking would be allowed to vote. The plebiscite had previously been open to all countries since 2007. This brought the Ballon d'Or into line with the UEFA Men's Player of the Year Award which was slightly less dominated by exclusive leagues and, in particular, Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi in recent years.[13]

Nine players (Bobby Charlton, Franz Beckenbauer, Gerd Müller, Paolo Rossi, Zinedine Zidane, Rivaldo, Ronaldinho, Kaká, and Lionel Messi) have won the FIFA World Cup, the European Cup/UEFA Champions League, and the Ballon d'Or during their careers.

Winners

Lionel Messi has won the most Ballons d'Or in history, with seven. He is also the record holder for most consecutive wins, with four between 2009 and 2012.

Note: Until 2021, the Ballon d'Or was awarded based on player performance during the calendar year. Since 2022, jurors have been instructed to take into account the previous season.[26]

Key
     This indicates the Ballon d'Or winning player also won the FIFA World Player of the Year or
The Best FIFA Men's Player award in the same year (available in 1991–2009 and from 2016)
Cristiano Ronaldo has been nominated for the Ballon d'Or a record eighteen times, and is a five-time winner.[27]
George Weah was the first non-European and first African national team player to win the award.
Lev Yashin is the only goalkeeper to win the award.
Franz Beckenbauer is the only defender to win the award twice.
Year Rank Player Team Points
Ballon d'Or (1956–2009)
1956 1st England Stanley Matthews England Blackpool 47
2nd Spain Alfredo Di Stéfano Spain Real Madrid 44
3rd France Raymond Kopa[note 1] Spain Real Madrid 33
1957 1st Spain Alfredo Di Stéfano[note 2] Spain Real Madrid 72
2nd England Billy Wright England Wolverhampton Wanderers 19
3rd England Duncan Edwards England Manchester United 16
France Raymond Kopa Spain Real Madrid
1958 1st France Raymond Kopa Spain Real Madrid 71
2nd West Germany Helmut Rahn West Germany Rot-Weiss Essen 40
3rd France Just Fontaine France Reims 23
1959 1st Spain Alfredo Di Stéfano Spain Real Madrid 80
2nd France Raymond Kopa[note 3] France Reims 42
3rd Wales John Charles Italy Juventus 24
1960 1st Spain Luis Suárez Spain Barcelona 54
2nd Hungary Ferenc Puskás Spain Real Madrid 37
3rd West Germany Uwe Seeler West Germany Hamburger SV 33
1961 1st Italy Omar Sívori[note 4] Italy Juventus 46
2nd Spain Luis Suárez[note 5] Italy Inter Milan 40
3rd England Johnny Haynes England Fulham 22
1962 1st Czechoslovakia Josef Masopust Czechoslovakia Dukla Prague 65
2nd Portugal Eusébio Portugal Benfica 53
3rd West Germany Karl-Heinz Schnellinger West Germany 1. FC Köln 33
1963 1st Soviet Union Lev Yashin Soviet Union Dynamo Moscow 73
2nd Italy Gianni Rivera Italy Milan 55
3rd England Jimmy Greaves England Tottenham Hotspur 50
1964 1st Scotland Denis Law England Manchester United 61
2nd Spain Luis Suárez Italy Inter Milan 43
3rd Spain Amancio Spain Real Madrid 38
1965 1st Portugal Eusébio Portugal Benfica 67
2nd Italy Giacinto Facchetti Italy Inter Milan 59
3rd Spain Luis Suárez Italy Inter Milan 45
1966 1st England Bobby Charlton England Manchester United 81
2nd Portugal Eusébio Portugal Benfica 80
3rd West Germany Franz Beckenbauer West Germany Bayern Munich 59
1967 1st Hungary Flórián Albert Hungary Ferencváros 68
2nd England Bobby Charlton England Manchester United 40
3rd Scotland Jimmy Johnstone Scotland Celtic 39
1968 1st Northern Ireland George Best England Manchester United 61
2nd England Bobby Charlton England Manchester United 53
3rd Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia Dragan Džajić Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia Red Star Belgrade 46
1969 1st Italy Gianni Rivera Italy Milan 83
2nd Italy Gigi Riva Italy Cagliari 79
3rd West Germany Gerd Müller West Germany Bayern Munich 38
1970 1st West Germany Gerd Müller West Germany Bayern Munich 77
2nd England Bobby Moore England West Ham United 70
3rd Italy Gigi Riva Italy Cagliari 65
1971 1st Netherlands Johan Cruyff Netherlands Ajax 116
2nd Italy Sandro Mazzola Italy Inter Milan 57
3rd Northern Ireland George Best England Manchester United 56
1972 1st West Germany Franz Beckenbauer West Germany Bayern Munich 81
2nd West Germany Gerd Müller West Germany Bayern Munich 79
West Germany Günter Netzer West Germany Borussia Mönchengladbach
1973 1st Netherlands Johan Cruyff[note 6] Spain Barcelona 96
2nd Italy Dino Zoff Italy Juventus 47
3rd West Germany Gerd Müller West Germany Bayern Munich 44
1974 1st Netherlands Johan Cruyff Spain Barcelona 116
2nd West Germany Franz Beckenbauer West Germany Bayern Munich 105
3rd Poland Kazimierz Deyna Poland Legia Warsaw 35
1975 1st Soviet Union Oleg Blokhin Soviet Union Dynamo Kyiv 122
2nd West Germany Franz Beckenbauer West Germany Bayern Munich 42
3rd Netherlands Johan Cruyff Spain Barcelona 27
1976 1st West Germany Franz Beckenbauer West Germany Bayern Munich 91
2nd Netherlands Rob Rensenbrink Belgium Anderlecht 75
3rd Czechoslovakia Ivo Viktor Czechoslovakia Dukla Prague 52
1977 1st Denmark Allan Simonsen West Germany Borussia Mönchengladbach 74
2nd England Kevin Keegan[note 7] West Germany Hamburger SV 71
3rd France Michel Platini France Nancy 70
1978 1st England Kevin Keegan West Germany Hamburger SV 87
2nd Austria Hans Krankl[note 8] Spain Barcelona 81
3rd Netherlands Rob Rensenbrink Belgium Anderlecht 50
1979 1st England Kevin Keegan West Germany Hamburger SV 118
2nd West Germany Karl-Heinz Rummenigge West Germany Bayern Munich 52
3rd Netherlands Ruud Krol Netherlands Ajax 41
1980 1st West Germany Karl-Heinz Rummenigge West Germany Bayern Munich 122
2nd West Germany Bernd Schuster[note 9] Spain Barcelona 34
3rd France Michel Platini France Saint-Étienne 33
1981 1st West Germany Karl-Heinz Rummenigge West Germany Bayern Munich 106
2nd West Germany Paul Breitner West Germany Bayern Munich 64
3rd West Germany Bernd Schuster Spain Barcelona 39
1982 1st Italy Paolo Rossi Italy Juventus 115
2nd France Alain Giresse France Bordeaux 64
3rd Poland Zbigniew Boniek[note 10] Italy Juventus 39
1983 1st France Michel Platini Italy Juventus 110
2nd Scotland Kenny Dalglish England Liverpool 26
3rd Denmark Allan Simonsen[note 11] Denmark Vejle 25
1984 1st France Michel Platini Italy Juventus 110
2nd France Jean Tigana France Bordeaux 57
3rd Denmark Preben Elkjær[note 12] Italy Hellas Verona 48
1985 1st France Michel Platini Italy Juventus 127
2nd Denmark Preben Elkjær Italy Hellas Verona 71
3rd West Germany Bernd Schuster Spain Barcelona 46
1986 1st Soviet Union Igor Belanov Soviet Union Dynamo Kyiv 84
2nd England Gary Lineker[note 13] Spain Barcelona 62
3rd Spain Emilio Butragueño Spain Real Madrid 59
1987 1st Netherlands Ruud Gullit[note 14] Italy Milan 106
2nd Portugal Paulo Futre[note 15] Spain Atlético Madrid 91
3rd Spain Emilio Butragueño Spain Real Madrid 61
1988 1st Netherlands Marco van Basten Italy Milan 129
2nd Netherlands Ruud Gullit Italy Milan 88
3rd Netherlands Frank Rijkaard[note 16] Italy Milan 45
1989 1st Netherlands Marco van Basten Italy Milan 129
2nd Italy Franco Baresi Italy Milan 80
3rd Netherlands Frank Rijkaard Italy Milan 43
1990 1st Germany Lothar Matthäus Italy Inter Milan 137
2nd Italy Salvatore Schillaci Italy Juventus 84
3rd Germany Andreas Brehme Italy Inter Milan 68
1991 1st France Jean-Pierre Papin France Marseille 141
2nd Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia Dejan Savićević Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia Red Star Belgrade 42
Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia Darko Pančev Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia Red Star Belgrade
Germany Lothar Matthäus Italy Inter Milan
1992 1st Netherlands Marco van Basten Italy Milan 98
2nd Bulgaria Hristo Stoichkov Spain Barcelona 80
3rd Netherlands Dennis Bergkamp Netherlands Ajax 53
1993 1st Italy Roberto Baggio Italy Juventus 142
2nd Netherlands Dennis Bergkamp[note 17] Italy Inter Milan 83
3rd France Eric Cantona England Manchester United 34
1994 1st Bulgaria Hristo Stoichkov Spain Barcelona 210
2nd Italy Roberto Baggio Italy Juventus 136
3rd Italy Paolo Maldini Italy Milan 109
1995 1st Liberia George Weah [note 18] Italy Milan 144
2nd Germany Jürgen Klinsmann[note 19] Germany Bayern Munich 108
3rd Finland Jari Litmanen Netherlands Ajax 67
1996 1st Germany Matthias Sammer Germany Borussia Dortmund 144
2nd Brazil Ronaldo[note 20] Spain Barcelona 143
3rd England Alan Shearer[note 21] England Newcastle United 107
1997 1st Brazil Ronaldo [note 22] Italy Inter Milan 222
2nd Federal Republic of Yugoslavia Predrag Mijatović Spain Real Madrid 68
3rd France Zinedine Zidane Italy Juventus 63
1998 1st France Zinedine Zidane Italy Juventus 244
2nd Croatia Davor Šuker Spain Real Madrid 68
3rd Brazil Ronaldo Italy Inter Milan 66
1999 1st Brazil Rivaldo Spain Barcelona 219
2nd England David Beckham England Manchester United 154
3rd Ukraine Andriy Shevchenko[note 23] Italy Milan 64
2000 1st Portugal Luís Figo[note 24] Spain Real Madrid 197
2nd France Zinedine Zidane Italy Juventus 181
3rd Ukraine Andriy Shevchenko Italy Milan 85
2001 1st England Michael Owen England Liverpool 176
2nd Spain Raúl Spain Real Madrid 140
3rd Germany Oliver Kahn Germany Bayern Munich 114
2002 1st Brazil Ronaldo [note 25] Spain Real Madrid 169
2nd Brazil Roberto Carlos Spain Real Madrid 145
3rd Germany Oliver Kahn Germany Bayern Munich 110
2003 1st Czech Republic Pavel Nedvěd Italy Juventus 190
2nd France Thierry Henry England Arsenal 128
3rd Italy Paolo Maldini Italy Milan 123
2004 1st Ukraine Andriy Shevchenko Italy Milan 175
2nd Portugal Deco[note 26] Spain Barcelona 139
3rd Brazil Ronaldinho Spain Barcelona 133
2005 1st Brazil Ronaldinho Spain Barcelona 225
2nd England Frank Lampard England Chelsea 148
3rd England Steven Gerrard England Liverpool 142
2006 1st Italy Fabio Cannavaro [note 27] Spain Real Madrid 173
2nd Italy Gianluigi Buffon Italy Juventus 124
3rd France Thierry Henry England Arsenal 121
2007 1st Brazil Kaká Italy Milan 444
2nd Portugal Cristiano Ronaldo England Manchester United 277
3rd Argentina Lionel Messi Spain Barcelona 255
2008 1st Portugal Cristiano Ronaldo England Manchester United 446
2nd Argentina Lionel Messi Spain Barcelona 281
3rd Spain Fernando Torres England Liverpool 179
2009 1st Argentina Lionel Messi Spain Barcelona 473
2nd Portugal Cristiano Ronaldo[note 28] Spain Real Madrid 233
3rd Spain Xavi Spain Barcelona 170
FIFA Ballon d'Or (2010–2015)
2010 1st Argentina Lionel Messi Spain Barcelona 22.65%
2nd Spain Andrés Iniesta Spain Barcelona 17.36%
3rd Spain Xavi Spain Barcelona 16.48%
2011 1st Argentina Lionel Messi Spain Barcelona 47.88%
2nd Portugal Cristiano Ronaldo Spain Real Madrid 21.60%
3rd Spain Xavi Spain Barcelona 9.23%
2012 1st Argentina Lionel Messi Spain Barcelona 41.60%
2nd Portugal Cristiano Ronaldo Spain Real Madrid 23.68%
3rd Spain Andrés Iniesta Spain Barcelona 10.91%
2013 1st Portugal Cristiano Ronaldo Spain Real Madrid 27.99%
2nd Argentina Lionel Messi Spain Barcelona 24.72%
3rd France Franck Ribéry Germany Bayern Munich 23.36%
2014 1st Portugal Cristiano Ronaldo Spain Real Madrid 37.66%
2nd Argentina Lionel Messi Spain Barcelona 15.76%
3rd Germany Manuel Neuer Germany Bayern Munich 15.72%
2015 1st Argentina Lionel Messi Spain Barcelona 41.33%
2nd Portugal Cristiano Ronaldo Spain Real Madrid 27.76%
3rd Brazil Neymar Spain Barcelona 7.86%
Ballon d'Or (2016–present)
2016 1st Portugal Cristiano Ronaldo Spain Real Madrid 745
2nd Argentina Lionel Messi Spain Barcelona 316
3rd France Antoine Griezmann Spain Atlético Madrid 198
2017 1st Portugal Cristiano Ronaldo Spain Real Madrid 946
2nd Argentina Lionel Messi Spain Barcelona 670
3rd Brazil Neymar[note 29] France Paris Saint-Germain 361
2018 1st Croatia Luka Modrić Spain Real Madrid 753
2nd Portugal Cristiano Ronaldo[note 30] Italy Juventus 476
3rd France Antoine Griezmann Spain Atlético Madrid 414
2019 1st Argentina Lionel Messi Spain Barcelona 686
2nd Netherlands Virgil van Dijk England Liverpool 679
3rd Portugal Cristiano Ronaldo Italy Juventus 476
2020 Not awarded due to the COVID-19 pandemic[22]
2021 1st Argentina Lionel Messi[note 31] France Paris Saint-Germain 613
2nd Poland Robert Lewandowski Germany Bayern Munich 580
3rd Italy Jorginho England Chelsea 460
2022 1st France Karim Benzema Spain Real Madrid 549
2nd Senegal Sadio Mané England Liverpool 193
3rd Belgium Kevin De Bruyne England Manchester City 175

Wins by player

Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi won 10 consecutive Ballon d'Or trophies between them from 2008 to 2017.
Michel Platini won the award three years running (1983–85).
Ronaldo Nazario is the youngest player to win the Ballon d'Or.
Johan Cruyff (left) and Marco van Basten, both of the Netherlands, each won three times.
Player Winner Second place Third place
Argentina Lionel Messi[note 32] 7 (2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2015, 2019, 2021) 5 (2008, 2013, 2014, 2016, 2017) 1 (2007)
Portugal Cristiano Ronaldo[note 33] 5 (2008, 2013, 2014, 2016, 2017) 6 (2007, 2009, 2011, 2012, 2015, 2018) 1 (2019)
France Michel Platini 3 (1983, 1984, 1985) 2 (1977, 1980)
Netherlands Johan Cruyff 3 (1971, 1973, 1974) 1 (1975)
Netherlands Marco van Basten 3 (1988, 1989, 1992)
West Germany Franz Beckenbauer 2 (1972, 1976) 2 (1974, 1975) 1 (1966)
Brazil Ronaldo 2 (1997, 2002) 1 (1996) 1 (1998)
Spain Alfredo Di Stéfano 2 (1957, 1959) 1 (1956)
England Kevin Keegan 2 (1978, 1979) 1 (1977)
West Germany Karl-Heinz Rummenigge 2 (1980, 1981) 1 (1979)
Spain Luis Suárez 1 (1960) 2 (1961, 1964) 1 (1965)
Portugal Eusébio 1 (1965) 2 (1962, 1966)
England Bobby Charlton 1 (1966) 2 (1967, 1968)
France Raymond Kopa 1 (1958) 1 (1959) 2 (1956, 1957)
West Germany Gerd Müller 1 (1970) 1 (1972) 2 (1969, 1973)
France Zinedine Zidane 1 (1998) 1 (2000) 1 (1997)
Italy Gianni Rivera 1 (1969) 1 (1963)
Netherlands Ruud Gullit 1 (1987) 1 (1988)
Germany Lothar Matthäus 1 (1990) 1 (1991)
Italy Roberto Baggio 1 (1993) 1 (1994)
Bulgaria Hristo Stoichkov 1 (1994) 1 (1992)
Ukraine Andriy Shevchenko 1 (2004) 2 (1999, 2000)
Northern Ireland George Best 1 (1968) 1 (1971)
Denmark Allan Simonsen 1 (1977) 1 (1983)
Brazil Ronaldinho 1 (2005) 1 (2004)
Soviet Union Lev Yashin 1 (1963)
Hungary Flórián Albert 1 (1967)
France Jean-Pierre Papin 1 (1991)
Liberia George Weah 1 (1995)
Germany Matthias Sammer 1 (1996)
Brazil Rivaldo 1 (1999)
Portugal Luís Figo 1 (2000)
England Michael Owen 1 (2001)
Czech Republic Pavel Nedvěd 1 (2003)
Italy Fabio Cannavaro 1 (2006)
Brazil Kaká 1 (2007)
Croatia Luka Modrić 1 (2018)
France Karim Benzema 1 (2022)

Wins by country

Three Ukrainian players have won the Ballon d'Or: Andriy Shevchenko, Oleg Blokhin, and Igor Belanov.
Marco van Basten (left) and Ruud Gullit, teammates for AC Milan and the Netherlands, won in consecutive years from 1987 to 1989.
Country Players Wins
 France 5 7
 Germany 5 7
 Netherlands 3 7
 Portugal 3 7
 Argentina 1 7
 Italy 5 5
 Brazil 4 5
 England 4 5
 Soviet Union 3 3
 Spain 2 3
 Bulgaria 1 1
 Croatia 1 1
 Czech Republic 1 1
 Czechoslovakia 1 1
 Denmark 1 1
 Hungary 1 1
 Liberia 1 1
 Northern Ireland 1 1
 Scotland 1 1
 Ukraine 1 1

Wins by club

Club Players Wins
Spain Real Madrid 8 12
Spain Barcelona 6 12
Italy Juventus 6 8
Italy Milan 6 8
Germany Bayern Munich 3 5
England Manchester United 4 4
Ukraine Dynamo Kyiv 2 2
Italy Inter Milan 2 2
Germany Hamburger SV 1 2
Netherlands Ajax 1 1
Portugal Benfica 1 1
England Blackpool 1 1
Germany Borussia Dortmund 1 1
Germany Borussia Mönchengladbach 1 1
Czech Republic Dukla Prague 1 1
Russia Dynamo Moscow 1 1
Hungary Ferencváros 1 1
England Liverpool 1 1
France Marseille 1 1
France Paris Saint-Germain 1 1

Additional awards

Ballon d'Or Dream Team

Super Ballon d'Or

An honorary award, under the name Super Ballon d'Or, was awarded to Alfredo Di Stéfano in 1989, who was voted the best multiple-time Ballon d'Or winner ahead of Johan Cruyff and Michel Platini.[30]

In addition Diego Maradona received an honorary Ballon d'Or in 1995 for his services to football dubbed the Golden Ballon d'Or.[31][32] Pelé also received a similar award in January 2014 dubbed the FIFA Ballon d’Or Prix d’Honneur.[33]

Kopa Trophy

Since 2018 France Football has given out the Kopa Trophy to the best U21 player in the world. The award is named after former Ballon d'Or winner Raymond Kopa.

Yashin Trophy

First awarded in 2019, the Yashin Trophy is presented to the best goalkeeper of the year. The award was named after Soviet goalkeeper and former Ballon d'Or winner Lev Yashin.[34]

Gerd Müller Trophy

In 2021 France Football awarded Robert Lewandowski with a Striker of the Year award for scoring the most goals the previous season. After Gerd Müller passing the award was renamed as the Gerd Müller Trophy.[35][36]

Club of the Year

France Football first gave out the Club of the Year award in 2021, with the inaugural winner being Chelsea.[37][38]

Sócrates Award

In 2022 France Football gave out the first edition of the Sócrates Award to Sadio Mané for his humanitarian efforts in Senegal.[39] The award was named after Brazilian footballer Sócrates.

Football Player of the Century

A decade later, France Football voted Pelé as the Football Player of the Century after consulting their former Ballon d'Or recipients. Among the 34 previous winners, 30 cast their votes, while Stanley Matthews, Omar Sívori and George Best refused to vote, and Lev Yashin had died. Each voter was allotted five votes worth up to five points; however, Di Stéfano only chose a first place, Platini a first and second place, and George Weah two players for fifth place. Pelé was named the greatest by 17 voters, receiving almost double the number of points earned by the runner-up, Diego Maradona.[40][41]

Football Player of the Century
Player Pts 1st 2nd 3rd 4th 5th
Brazil Pelé 122175421
Argentina Diego Maradona 6536551
Netherlands Johan Cruyff 6214792
Spain Alfredo Di Stéfano 4443311
France Michel Platini 4015136

Le nouveau palmarès

To coincide with the 60th anniversary of the Ballon d'Or in 2016, France Football published a reevaluation of the awards presented before 1995, when only European players were eligible to win the award. 12 out of the 39 Ballons d'Or presented during this time period would have been awarded to South American players; in addition to Pelé and Diego Maradona, Garrincha, Mario Kempes, and Romário were retrospectively recognized as worthy winners. The original recipients, however, remain unchanged.[42]

Le nouveau palmarès (internationalized reevaluation)
Year Original winner Alternative
1958 France Raymond Kopa Brazil Pelé
1959 Spain Alfredo Di Stéfano Brazil Pelé
1960 Spain Luis Suárez Brazil Pelé
1961 Italy Omar Sívori Brazil Pelé
1962 Czechoslovakia Josef Masopust Brazil Garrincha
1963 Soviet Union Lev Yashin Brazil Pelé
1964 Scotland Denis Law Brazil Pelé
1970 West Germany Gerd Müller Brazil Pelé
1978 England Kevin Keegan Argentina Mario Kempes
1986 Soviet Union Igor Belanov Argentina Diego Maradona
1990 Germany Lothar Matthäus Argentina Diego Maradona
1994 Bulgaria Hristo Stoichkov Brazil Romário

All-Star Team

In 1978, France Football published an article about that year's South American Footballer of the Year award in which they hypothesised a match between a South American All-Star Team and a European All-Star team, featuring the players who had performed the best in the award rankings.[43] An article from 1994 published by El País reports a "Golden Team" having been chosen at the 1994 Ballon d'Or gala.[44]

Goalkeeper Defenders Midfielders Forwards

Sweden Ronnie Hellström

France Marius Trésor
Netherlands Ruud Krol
West Germany Rainer Bonhof
Italy Antonio Cabrini

Netherlands Willy van de Kerkhof
Netherlands Arie Haan
Scotland Graeme Souness

England Kevin Keegan
Austria Hans Krankl
Netherlands Rob Rensenbrink

Sweden Thomas Ravelli

France Marcel Desailly
Italy Paolo Maldini
Belgium Philippe Albert

Sweden Tomas Brolin
Finland Jari Litmanen
Bulgaria Yordan Letchkov
Romania Gheorghe Hagi
Italy Roberto Baggio

Germany Jürgen Klinsmann
Bulgaria Hristo Stoichkov

See also

Notes

  1. Kopa was signed by Real Madrid from Reims midway through 1956.
  2. Born in Argentina, Di Stéfano acquired Spanish citizenship in 1956 and went on to play for the Spanish national team.
  3. Kopa was signed by Reims from Real Madrid midway through 1959.
  4. Born in Argentina, Sívori acquired Italian citizenship in 1961 and went on to play for the Italian national team.
  5. Luis Suárez was signed by Inter Milan from Barcelona midway through 1961.
  6. Cruyff was signed by Barcelona from Ajax midway through 1973.
  7. Keegan was signed by Hamburger SV from Liverpool midway through 1977.
  8. Krankl was signed by Barcelona from Rapid Wien midway through 1978.
  9. Schuster was signed by Barcelona from 1. FC Köln midway through 1980.
  10. Boniek was signed by Juventus from Widzew Łódź midway through 1982.
  11. Simonsen was signed by Vejle from Charlton Athletic midway through 1983.
  12. Elkjær was signed by Hellas Verona from Lokeren midway through 1984.
  13. Lineker was signed by Barcelona from Everton midway through 1986.
  14. Gullit was signed by Milan from PSV Eindhoven midway through 1987.
  15. Futre was signed by Atlético Madrid from Porto midway through 1987.
  16. Rijkaard was signed by Milan from Zaragoza midway through 1988.
  17. Bergkamp was signed by Inter Milan from Ajax midway through 1993.
  18. Weah was signed by Milan from Paris Saint-Germain midway through 1995.
  19. Klinsmann was signed by Bayern Munich from Tottenham Hotspur midway through 1995.
  20. Ronaldo was signed by Barcelona from PSV Eindhoven midway through 1996.
  21. Shearer was signed by Newcastle United from Blackburn Rovers midway through 1996.
  22. Ronaldo was signed by Inter Milan from Barcelona midway through 1997.
  23. Shevchenko was signed by Milan from Dynamo Kyiv midway through 1999.
  24. Figo was signed by Real Madrid from Barcelona midway through 2000.
  25. Ronaldo was signed by Real Madrid from Inter Milan midway through 2002.
  26. Deco was signed by Barcelona from Porto midway through 2004.
  27. Cannavaro was signed by Real Madrid from Juventus midway through 2006.
  28. Cristiano Ronaldo was signed by Real Madrid from Manchester United midway through 2009.
  29. Neymar was signed by Paris Saint-Germain from Barcelona midway through 2017.
  30. Cristiano Ronaldo was signed by Juventus from Real Madrid midway through 2018.
  31. Messi was signed by Paris Saint-Germain from Barcelona midway through 2021.
  32. Messi won four FIFA Ballons d'Or (2010, 2011, 2012, 2015) and twice finished in second place (2013, 2014).[28][29]
  33. Cristiano Ronaldo won two FIFA Ballons d'Or (2013, 2014) and finished in second place three times (2011, 2012, 2015).[28][29]

References

  1. "Ballon d'Or: Players who have received the most nominations". 90min. 15 November 2021. Archived from the original on 29 November 2021. Retrieved 29 November 2021.
  2. "Ballon d'Or, FIFA The Best awards: what's the difference between them?". Diario AS. 24 February 2023. Retrieved 27 May 2023. Created by France Football in 1956, the Ballon d'Or is generally regarded as soccer's most prestigious award.
  3. Why the Ballon d'Or is a waste of time
  4. Why the Ballon d’Or has become a meaningless accolade
  5. Why the Ballon d’Or is stupid and quite possibly evil
  6. Weekly Why: FIFA's Ballon d'Or and the Absurdity of Glorifying Individual Awards
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