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 and co-organized alongside UEFA since 2024. 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 organizations.[2]

Ballon d'Or
Ballon d'Or trophy
Date1956; 68 years ago (1956)
LocationParis, France
Presented byFrance Football
First awarded1956
Current holderArgentina Lionel Messi
(8th award)
Most awardsArgentina Lionel Messi
(8 awards)[1]
Most nominationsPortugal Cristiano Ronaldo
(18 nominations)[1]
Websitefrancefootball.fr
RelatedBallon d'Or Féminin
← 2023 · Ballon d'Or · 2024 →

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.[2] Originally, it was awarded only to players from Europe and was widely known as the European Footballer of the Year award. In 1995, the Ballon d'Or was expanded to include all players of any origin that have been active at European clubs.[3][4]

The award became a global prize in 2007 with all professional footballers from around the world being eligible;[5] additionally, coaches and captains of national teams were also given the right to vote.[2] In 2022, France Football modified the rules for the Ballon d'Or. The timing was changed so that awards were given not for achievements during a calendar year, but for a football season, and it was also determined that only countries from the top 100 of the FIFA Men's World Ranking would be allowed to vote.[6]

Lionel Messi won the award a record eight times, and he is also the current holder of the Ballon d'Or, having won its most recent edition in 2023. Cristiano Ronaldo has won it five times and amassed a record 18 nominations in his career. Michel Platini, Johan Cruyff and Marco van Basten each won the award three times, while Franz Beckenbauer, Ronaldo, Alfredo Di Stéfano, Kevin Keegan and Karl-Heinz Rummenigge have each won it twice.[1]

History

The Ballon d'Or has historically been regarded as football's most prestigious and valuable individual award.[7] Nevertheless, in recent times, critics have described the award as a "popularity contest", criticizing its voting process, its bias in favour of attacking players, and for the idea of systematically singling out an individual in a team sport.[note 1][2]

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.[4] Ronaldo of Brazil became the first South American winner two years later.[4]

Lionel Messi has won the award a record eight times, followed by Cristiano Ronaldo with five.[1] Messi is the only player in history to win the award with three different teams and also the only one to win it while playing outside Europe.[19] Three players have won the award three times each: Johan Cruyff, Michel Platini, and Marco van Basten. With seven awards each, Dutch, German, Portuguese and French players have won the second most Ballons d'Or, underneath Argentina in first with eight. 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.[20]

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.[21] 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.[22]

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.[23] The widespread public opinion is that the 2020 award should have been given to Robert Lewandowski.[24][25][26]

The award shows a bias in favour of attacking players, which has increased in recent years, especially after 2007.[2] Over time, the award has gone to a more exclusive set of leagues and clubs.[2] Prior to 1995, 10 leagues supplied Ballon d'Or winners, whereas only England, France, Germany, Italy, and Spain have supplied winners since 1995.[2] Spain's La Liga has the most Ballon d'Or winners.[2] Barcelona and Real Madrid have supplied the most Ballon d'Or winners since 1995.[2]

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.[6] 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.[6]

From 2024, UEFA will co-organize the Ballon d'Or with France Football, with the magazine retaining the voting system and the Ballon d'Or name and UEFA organizing the awards gala.[27]

Winners

 
Lionel Messi has won the most Ballons d'Or in history, with eight wins in three different decades. 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.[28]

Key
  ‡   This indicates the Ballon d'Or winning player also won the FIFA World Player of the Year (1991–2009) or The Best FIFA Men's Player award (2016–present) in the same year
 
Cristiano Ronaldo has been nominated for the Ballon d'Or a record eighteen times, and is a five-time winner.
 
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   Stanley Matthews   Blackpool 47
2nd   Alfredo Di Stéfano   Real Madrid 44
3rd   Raymond Kopa[note 2]   Real Madrid 33
1957 1st   Alfredo Di Stéfano[note 3]   Real Madrid 72
2nd   Billy Wright   Wolverhampton Wanderers 19
3rd   Duncan Edwards   Manchester United 16
  Raymond Kopa   Real Madrid
1958 1st   Raymond Kopa   Real Madrid 71
2nd   Helmut Rahn   Rot-Weiss Essen 40
3rd   Just Fontaine   Reims 23
1959 1st   Alfredo Di Stéfano   Real Madrid 80
2nd   Raymond Kopa[note 4]   Reims 42
3rd   John Charles   Juventus 24
1960 1st   Luis Suárez   Barcelona 54
2nd   Ferenc Puskás   Real Madrid 37
3rd   Uwe Seeler   Hamburger SV 33
1961 1st   Omar Sívori[note 5]   Juventus 46
2nd   Luis Suárez[note 6]   Inter Milan 40
3rd   Johnny Haynes   Fulham 22
1962 1st   Josef Masopust   Dukla Prague 65
2nd   Eusébio   Benfica 53
3rd   Karl-Heinz Schnellinger   1. FC Köln 33
1963 1st   Lev Yashin   Dynamo Moscow 73
2nd   Gianni Rivera   Milan 55
3rd   Jimmy Greaves   Tottenham Hotspur 50
1964 1st   Denis Law   Manchester United 61
2nd   Luis Suárez   Inter Milan 43
3rd   Amancio   Real Madrid 38
1965 1st   Eusébio   Benfica 67
2nd   Giacinto Facchetti   Inter Milan 59
3rd   Luis Suárez   Inter Milan 45
1966 1st   Bobby Charlton   Manchester United 81
2nd   Eusébio   Benfica 80
3rd   Franz Beckenbauer   Bayern Munich 59
1967 1st   Flórián Albert   Ferencváros 68
2nd   Bobby Charlton   Manchester United 40
3rd   Jimmy Johnstone   Celtic 39
1968 1st   George Best   Manchester United 61
2nd   Bobby Charlton   Manchester United 53
3rd   Dragan Džajić   Red Star Belgrade 46
1969 1st   Gianni Rivera   Milan 83
2nd   Gigi Riva   Cagliari 79
3rd   Gerd Müller   Bayern Munich 38
1970 1st   Gerd Müller   Bayern Munich 77
2nd   Bobby Moore   West Ham United 70
3rd   Gigi Riva   Cagliari 65
1971 1st   Johan Cruyff   Ajax 116
2nd   Sandro Mazzola   Inter Milan 57
3rd   George Best   Manchester United 56
1972 1st   Franz Beckenbauer   Bayern Munich 81
2nd   Gerd Müller   Bayern Munich 79
  Günter Netzer   Borussia Mönchengladbach
1973 1st   Johan Cruyff[note 7]   Barcelona 96
2nd   Dino Zoff   Juventus 47
3rd   Gerd Müller   Bayern Munich 44
1974 1st   Johan Cruyff   Barcelona 116
2nd   Franz Beckenbauer   Bayern Munich 105
3rd   Kazimierz Deyna   Legia Warsaw 35
1975 1st   Oleg Blokhin   Dynamo Kyiv 122
2nd   Franz Beckenbauer   Bayern Munich 42
3rd   Johan Cruyff   Barcelona 27
1976 1st   Franz Beckenbauer   Bayern Munich 91
2nd   Rob Rensenbrink   Anderlecht 75
3rd   Ivo Viktor   Dukla Prague 52
1977 1st   Allan Simonsen   Borussia Mönchengladbach 74
2nd   Kevin Keegan[note 8]   Hamburger SV 71
3rd   Michel Platini   Nancy 70
1978 1st   Kevin Keegan   Hamburger SV 87
2nd   Hans Krankl[note 9]   Barcelona 81
3rd   Rob Rensenbrink   Anderlecht 50
1979 1st   Kevin Keegan   Hamburger SV 118
2nd   Karl-Heinz Rummenigge   Bayern Munich 52
3rd   Ruud Krol   Ajax 41
1980 1st   Karl-Heinz Rummenigge   Bayern Munich 122
2nd   Bernd Schuster[note 10]   Barcelona 34
3rd   Michel Platini   Saint-Étienne 33
1981 1st   Karl-Heinz Rummenigge   Bayern Munich 106
2nd   Paul Breitner   Bayern Munich 64
3rd   Bernd Schuster   Barcelona 39
1982 1st   Paolo Rossi   Juventus 115
2nd   Alain Giresse   Bordeaux 64
3rd   Zbigniew Boniek[note 11]   Juventus 39
1983 1st   Michel Platini   Juventus 110
2nd   Kenny Dalglish   Liverpool 26
3rd   Allan Simonsen[note 12]   Vejle 25
1984 1st   Michel Platini   Juventus 110
2nd   Jean Tigana   Bordeaux 57
3rd   Preben Elkjær[note 13]   Hellas Verona 48
1985 1st   Michel Platini   Juventus 127
2nd   Preben Elkjær   Hellas Verona 71
3rd   Bernd Schuster   Barcelona 46
1986 1st   Igor Belanov   Dynamo Kyiv 84
2nd   Gary Lineker[note 14]   Barcelona 62
3rd   Emilio Butragueño   Real Madrid 59
1987 1st   Ruud Gullit[note 15]   Milan 106
2nd   Paulo Futre[note 16]   Atlético Madrid 91
3rd   Emilio Butragueño   Real Madrid 61
1988 1st   Marco van Basten   Milan 129
2nd   Ruud Gullit   Milan 88
3rd   Frank Rijkaard[note 17]   Milan 45
1989 1st   Marco van Basten   Milan 129
2nd   Franco Baresi   Milan 80
3rd   Frank Rijkaard   Milan 43
1990 1st   Lothar Matthäus   Inter Milan 137
2nd   Salvatore Schillaci   Juventus 84
3rd   Andreas Brehme   Inter Milan 68
1991 1st   Jean-Pierre Papin   Marseille 141
2nd   Dejan Savićević   Red Star Belgrade 42
  Darko Pančev   Red Star Belgrade
  Lothar Matthäus   Inter Milan
1992 1st   Marco van Basten   Milan 98
2nd   Hristo Stoichkov   Barcelona 80
3rd   Dennis Bergkamp   Ajax 53
1993 1st   Roberto Baggio   Juventus 142
2nd   Dennis Bergkamp[note 18]   Inter Milan 83
3rd   Eric Cantona   Manchester United 34
1994 1st   Hristo Stoichkov   Barcelona 210
2nd   Roberto Baggio   Juventus 136
3rd   Paolo Maldini   Milan 109
1995 1st   George Weah [note 19]   Milan 144
2nd   Jürgen Klinsmann[note 20]   Bayern Munich 108
3rd   Jari Litmanen   Ajax 67
1996 1st   Matthias Sammer   Borussia Dortmund 144
2nd   Ronaldo[note 21]   Barcelona 143
3rd   Alan Shearer[note 22]   Newcastle United 107
1997 1st   Ronaldo [note 23]   Inter Milan 222
2nd   Predrag Mijatović   Real Madrid 68
3rd   Zinedine Zidane   Juventus 63
1998 1st   Zinedine Zidane   Juventus 244
2nd   Davor Šuker   Real Madrid 68
3rd   Ronaldo   Inter Milan 66
1999 1st   Rivaldo   Barcelona 219
2nd   David Beckham   Manchester United 154
3rd   Andriy Shevchenko[note 24]   Milan 64
2000 1st   Luís Figo[note 25]   Real Madrid 197
2nd   Zinedine Zidane   Juventus 181
3rd   Andriy Shevchenko   Milan 85
2001 1st   Michael Owen   Liverpool 176
2nd   Raúl   Real Madrid 140
3rd   Oliver Kahn   Bayern Munich 114
2002 1st   Ronaldo [note 26]   Real Madrid 169
2nd   Roberto Carlos   Real Madrid 145
3rd   Oliver Kahn   Bayern Munich 110
2003 1st   Pavel Nedvěd   Juventus 190
2nd   Thierry Henry   Arsenal 128
3rd   Paolo Maldini   Milan 123
2004 1st   Andriy Shevchenko   Milan 175
2nd   Deco[note 27]   Barcelona 139
3rd   Ronaldinho   Barcelona 133
2005 1st   Ronaldinho   Barcelona 225
2nd   Frank Lampard   Chelsea 148
3rd   Steven Gerrard   Liverpool 142
2006 1st   Fabio Cannavaro [note 28]   Real Madrid 173
2nd   Gianluigi Buffon   Juventus 124
3rd   Thierry Henry   Arsenal 121
2007 1st   Kaká   Milan 444
2nd   Cristiano Ronaldo   Manchester United 277
3rd   Lionel Messi   Barcelona 255
2008 1st   Cristiano Ronaldo   Manchester United 446
2nd   Lionel Messi   Barcelona 281
3rd   Fernando Torres   Liverpool 179
2009 1st   Lionel Messi   Barcelona 473
2nd   Cristiano Ronaldo[note 29]   Real Madrid 233
3rd   Xavi   Barcelona 170
FIFA Ballon d'Or (2010–2015)
2010 1st   Lionel Messi   Barcelona 22.65%
2nd   Andrés Iniesta   Barcelona 17.36%
3rd   Xavi   Barcelona 16.48%
2011 1st   Lionel Messi   Barcelona 47.88%
2nd   Cristiano Ronaldo   Real Madrid 21.60%
3rd   Xavi   Barcelona 9.23%
2012 1st   Lionel Messi   Barcelona 41.60%
2nd   Cristiano Ronaldo   Real Madrid 23.68%
3rd   Andrés Iniesta   Barcelona 10.91%
2013 1st   Cristiano Ronaldo   Real Madrid 27.99%
2nd   Lionel Messi   Barcelona 24.72%
3rd   Franck Ribéry   Bayern Munich 23.36%
2014 1st   Cristiano Ronaldo   Real Madrid 37.66%
2nd   Lionel Messi   Barcelona 15.76%
3rd   Manuel Neuer   Bayern Munich 15.72%
2015 1st   Lionel Messi   Barcelona 41.33%
2nd   Cristiano Ronaldo   Real Madrid 27.76%
3rd   Neymar   Barcelona 7.86%
Ballon d'Or (2016–present)
2016 1st   Cristiano Ronaldo   Real Madrid 745
2nd   Lionel Messi   Barcelona 316
3rd   Antoine Griezmann   Atlético Madrid 198
2017 1st   Cristiano Ronaldo   Real Madrid 946
2nd   Lionel Messi   Barcelona 670
3rd   Neymar[note 30]   Paris Saint-Germain 361
2018 1st   Luka Modrić   Real Madrid 753
2nd   Cristiano Ronaldo[note 31]   Juventus 476
3rd   Antoine Griezmann   Atlético Madrid 414
2019 1st   Lionel Messi   Barcelona 686
2nd   Virgil van Dijk   Liverpool 679
3rd   Cristiano Ronaldo   Juventus 476
2020 Not awarded due to the COVID-19 pandemic[23]
2021 1st   Lionel Messi[note 32]   Paris Saint-Germain 613
2nd   Robert Lewandowski   Bayern Munich 580
3rd   Jorginho   Chelsea 460
2022 1st   Karim Benzema   Real Madrid 549
2nd   Sadio Mané[note 33]   Bayern Munich 193
3rd   Kevin De Bruyne   Manchester City 175
2023 1st   Lionel Messi [note 34]   Inter Miami 462
2nd   Erling Haaland   Manchester City 357
3rd   Kylian Mbappé   Paris Saint-Germain 270

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 Nazário is the youngest player to win the Ballon d'Or.
Player Winner Runner-up Third place
  Lionel Messi[note 35] 8 (2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2015, 2019, 2021, 2023) 5 (2008, 2013, 2014, 2016, 2017) 1 (2007)
  Cristiano Ronaldo[note 36] 5 (2008, 2013, 2014, 2016, 2017) 6 (2007, 2009, 2011, 2012, 2015, 2018) 1 (2019)
  Michel Platini 3 (1983, 1984, 1985) 2 (1977, 1980)
  Johan Cruyff 3 (1971, 1973, 1974) 1 (1975)
  Marco van Basten 3 (1988, 1989, 1992)
  Franz Beckenbauer 2 (1972, 1976) 2 (1974, 1975) 1 (1966)
  Ronaldo 2 (1997, 2002) 1 (1996) 1 (1998)
  Alfredo Di Stéfano 2 (1957, 1959) 1 (1956)
  Kevin Keegan 2 (1978, 1979) 1 (1977)
  Karl-Heinz Rummenigge 2 (1980, 1981) 1 (1979)
  Luis Suárez 1 (1960) 2 (1961, 1964) 1 (1965)
  Eusébio 1 (1965) 2 (1962, 1966)
  Bobby Charlton 1 (1966) 2 (1967, 1968)
  Raymond Kopa 1 (1958) 1 (1959) 2 (1956, 1957)
  Gerd Müller 1 (1970) 1 (1972) 2 (1969, 1973)
  Zinedine Zidane 1 (1998) 1 (2000) 1 (1997)
  Gianni Rivera 1 (1969) 1 (1963)
  Ruud Gullit 1 (1987) 1 (1988)
  Lothar Matthäus 1 (1990) 1 (1991)
  Roberto Baggio 1 (1993) 1 (1994)
  Hristo Stoichkov 1 (1994) 1 (1992)
  Andriy Shevchenko 1 (2004) 2 (1999, 2000)
  George Best 1 (1968) 1 (1971)
  Allan Simonsen 1 (1977) 1 (1983)
  Ronaldinho 1 (2005) 1 (2004)
  Stanley Matthews 1 (1956)
  Omar Sivori 1 (1961)
  Josef Masopust 1 (1962)
  Lev Yashin 1 (1963)
  Denis Law 1 (1964)
  Flórián Albert 1 (1967)
  Oleg Blokhin 1 (1975)
  Paolo Rossi 1 (1982)
  Igor Belanov 1 (1986)
  Jean-Pierre Papin 1 (1991)
  George Weah 1 (1995)
  Matthias Sammer 1 (1996)
  Rivaldo 1 (1999)
  Luís Figo 1 (2000)
  Michael Owen 1 (2001)
  Pavel Nedvěd 1 (2003)
  Fabio Cannavaro 1 (2006)
  Kaká 1 (2007)
  Luka Modrić 1 (2018)
  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
  Argentina 1 8
  France 5 7
  Germany 5 7
  Netherlands 3 7
  Portugal 3 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
  Real Madrid 8 12
  Barcelona 6 12
  Juventus 6 8
  Milan 6 8
  Bayern Munich 3 5
  Manchester United 4 4
  Dynamo Kyiv 2 2
  Inter Milan 2 2
  Hamburger SV 1 2
  Ajax 1 1
  Benfica 1 1
  Blackpool 1 1
  Borussia Dortmund 1 1
  Borussia Mönchengladbach 1 1
  Dukla Prague 1 1
  Dynamo Moscow 1 1
  Ferencváros 1 1
  Inter Miami 1 1
  Liverpool 1 1
  Marseille 1 1
  Paris Saint-Germain 1 1

Additional awards

Ballon d'Or Dream Team

An all-time all-star team named Ballon d'Or Dream Team was published in December 2020 by France Football, honouring football's greatest players of all time.[31][32] A second and a third team were also published.[33]

Goalkeepers Defenders Midfielders Forwards
First Team

  Lev Yashin

  Cafu
  Franz Beckenbauer
  Paolo Maldini

  Xavi
  Lothar Matthäus
  Diego Maradona
  Pelé

  Lionel Messi
  Ronaldo
  Cristiano Ronaldo

Second Team

  Gianluigi Buffon

  Carlos Alberto
  Franco Baresi
  Roberto Carlos

  Andrea Pirlo
  Frank Rijkaard
  Zinedine Zidane
  Alfredo Di Stéfano

  Garrincha
  Johan Cruyff
  Ronaldinho

Third Team

  Manuel Neuer

  Philipp Lahm
  Sergio Ramos
  Paul Breitner

  Johan Neeskens
  Didi
  Michel Platini
  Andrés Iniesta

  George Best
  Marco van Basten
  Thierry Henry

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.[34]

In addition Diego Maradona received an honorary Ballon d'Or in 1995 for his services to football dubbed the Golden Ballon d'Or.[35][36] Pelé also received a similar award in January 2014 dubbed the FIFA Ballon d’Or Prix d’Honneur.[37]

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.[38]

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.[39]

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. Following Gerd Müller's death in 2021, the award was renamed for the 2022 edition to the Gerd Müller Trophy.[40][41]

Men's Club of the Year

France Football first gave out the Men's Club of the Year award in 2021, with the inaugural winner being Chelsea.[42][43] Manchester City won back-to-back in 2022[44] and 2023.[45]

Women's Club of the Year

France Football first gave out the Women's Club of the Year award in 2023, with the inaugural winner being FC Barcelona Femení.[46]

Men's Coach of the Year

France Football will give out the Men's Coach of the Year award starting in 2024.[27]

Women's Coach of the Year

France Football will give out the Women's Coach of the Year award starting in 2024.[27]

Sócrates Award

In 2022 France Football gave out the first edition of the Sócrates Award to Sadio Mané for his humanitarian efforts in Senegal.[47] In 2023, the winner was Vinícius Jr., for his humanitarian work in Brazil.[48] The award was named after late 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.[49][50]

Football Player of the Century
Player Pts 1st 2nd 3rd 4th 5th
  Pelé 122 17 5 4 2 1
  Diego Maradona 65 3 6 5 5 1
  Johan Cruyff 62 1 4 7 9 2
  Alfredo Di Stéfano 44 4 3 3 1 1
  Michel Platini 40 1 5 1 3 6

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.[51]

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

Other all-star teams

In 1978, France Football published an article about that year's South American Footballer of the Year award in which they hypothesized 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.[52]

Goalkeeper Defenders Midfielders Forwards

  Ronnie Hellström

  Marius Trésor
  Ruud Krol
  Rainer Bonhof
  Antonio Cabrini

  Willy van de Kerkhof
  Arie Haan
  Graeme Souness

  Kevin Keegan
  Hans Krankl
  Rob Rensenbrink

An article from 1994 published by El País reports a "Golden Team" having been chosen at the 1994 Ballon d'Or gala.[53]

Goalkeeper Defenders Midfielders Forwards

  Thomas Ravelli

  Marcel Desailly
  Paolo Maldini
  Philippe Albert

  Tomas Brolin
  Jari Litmanen
  Yordan Letchkov
  Gheorghe Hagi
  Roberto Baggio

  Jürgen Klinsmann
  Hristo Stoichkov

See also

Notes

  1. ^ Criticizing its voting process, Citations:[8][9][10][11][12][13]
  2. ^ Kopa was signed by Real Madrid from Reims midway through 1956.
  3. ^ Born in Argentina, Di Stéfano acquired Spanish citizenship in 1956 and went on to play for the Spain national team.
  4. ^ Kopa was signed by Reims from Real Madrid midway through 1959.
  5. ^ Born in Argentina, Sívori acquired Italian citizenship in 1961 and went on to play for the Italy national team.
  6. ^ Luis Suárez was signed by Inter Milan from Barcelona midway through 1961.
  7. ^ Cruyff was signed by Barcelona from Ajax midway through 1973.
  8. ^ Keegan was signed by Hamburger SV from Liverpool midway through 1977.
  9. ^ Krankl was signed by Barcelona from Rapid Wien midway through 1978.
  10. ^ Schuster was signed by Barcelona from 1. FC Köln midway through 1980.
  11. ^ Boniek was signed by Juventus from Widzew Łódź midway through 1982.
  12. ^ Simonsen was signed by Vejle from Charlton Athletic midway through 1983.
  13. ^ Elkjær was signed by Hellas Verona from Lokeren midway through 1984.
  14. ^ Lineker was signed by Barcelona from Everton midway through 1986.
  15. ^ Gullit was signed by Milan from PSV Eindhoven midway through 1987.
  16. ^ Futre was signed by Atlético Madrid from Porto midway through 1987.
  17. ^ Rijkaard was signed by Milan from Zaragoza midway through 1988.
  18. ^ Bergkamp was signed by Inter Milan from Ajax midway through 1993.
  19. ^ Weah was signed by Milan from Paris Saint-Germain midway through 1995.
  20. ^ Klinsmann was signed by Bayern Munich from Tottenham Hotspur midway through 1995.
  21. ^ Ronaldo was signed by Barcelona from PSV Eindhoven midway through 1996.
  22. ^ Shearer was signed by Newcastle United from Blackburn Rovers midway through 1996.
  23. ^ Ronaldo was signed by Inter Milan from Barcelona midway through 1997.
  24. ^ Shevchenko was signed by Milan from Dynamo Kyiv midway through 1999.
  25. ^ Figo was signed by Real Madrid from Barcelona midway through 2000.
  26. ^ Ronaldo was signed by Real Madrid from Inter Milan midway through 2002.
  27. ^ Deco was signed by Barcelona from Porto midway through 2004.
  28. ^ Cannavaro was signed by Real Madrid from Juventus midway through 2006.
  29. ^ Cristiano Ronaldo was signed by Real Madrid from Manchester United midway through 2009.
  30. ^ Neymar was signed by Paris Saint-Germain from Barcelona midway through 2017.
  31. ^ Cristiano Ronaldo was signed by Juventus from Real Madrid midway through 2018.
  32. ^ Messi was signed by Paris Saint-Germain from Barcelona midway through 2021.
  33. ^ Mané was signed by Bayern Munich from Liverpool midway through 2022.
  34. ^ Messi was signed by Inter Miami from Paris Saint-Germain midway through 2023.
  35. ^ Messi won four FIFA Ballons d'Or (2010, 2011, 2012, 2015) and twice finished in second place (2013, 2014).[29][30]
  36. ^ Cristiano Ronaldo won two FIFA Ballons d'Or (2013, 2014) and finished in second place three times (2011, 2012, 2015).[29][30]

References

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External links