A Complete List Of Men’s Ballon d’Or Winners (1956-2023)

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Unnati is a passionate cricket writer with a deep love and understanding of the game. As a female cricket writer, she brings a unique perspective to...

October 28, 2024

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Ballon d’Or is one of the most precious award given by France Football to the best male and female footballers over the previous year. This award is presented annually and holds utmost importance to the players.Lionel Messi from Argentina has won the men’s Ballon d’Or award eight times, making him the record holder for the most wins. His main rival, Cristiano Ronaldo, has won it five times.

For the first time since 2003, both Messi and Ronaldo are not on the list of nominees for the 2024 award.

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A Complete List Of Men's Ballon d'Or Winners (1956-2023)

The FIFA Player of the Year award was combined with the Ballon d’Or from 2010 to 2015, resulting in the FIFA Ballon d’Or, but they are now separate awards again.

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The following is a list of all the men’s Ballon d’Or winners, starting from 1956, when the award was first given to England’s Stanley Matthews.

Legendary Ballon d’Or Winners Through the Years

Stanley Matthews
- Nationality: England
- Year: 1956
Alfredo Di Stefano
- Nationality: Argentina/Spain
- Year: 1957
Raymond Kopa
- Nationality: France
- Year: 1958
Alfredo Di Stefano
- Nationality: Argentina/Spain
- Year: 1959
Luis Suárez
- Nationality: Spain
- Year: 1960
Omar Sivori
- Nationality: Italy
- Year: 1961
Josef Masopust
- Nationality: Czechoslovakia
- Year: 1962
Lev Yashin
- Nationality: Soviet Union
- Year: 1963
Denis Law
- Nationality: England
- Year: 1964
Eusébio
- Nationality: Portugal
- Year: 1965
Bobby Charlton
- Nationality: England
- Year: 1966
Flórián Albert
- Nationality: Hungary
- Year: 1967
George Best
- Nationality: Northern Ireland
- Year: 1968
Gianni Rivera
- Nationality: Italy
- Year: 1969
Gerd Müller
- Nationality: West Germany
- Year: 1970
Johan Cruyff
- Nationality: Netherlands
- Year: 1971
Franz Beckenbauer
- Nationality: West Germany
- Year: 1972
Johan Cruyff
- Nationality: Netherlands
- Year: 1973
Johan Cruyff
- Nationality: Netherlands
- Year: 1974
Oleg Blokhin
- Nationality: Soviet Union
- Year: 1975
Franz Beckenbauer
- Nationality: West Germany
- Year: 1976
Allan Simonsen
- Nationality: Denmark
- Year: 1977
Kevin Keegan
- Nationality: England
- Year: 1978
Kevin Keegan
- Nationality: England
- Year: 1979
Karl-Heinz Rummenigge
- Nationality: West Germany
- Year: 1980
Karl-Heinz Rummenigge
- Nationality: West Germany
- Year: 1981
Paolo Rossi
- Nationality: Italy
- Year: 1982
Michel Platini
- Nationality: France
- Year: 1983
Michel Platini
- Nationality: France
- Year: 1984
Michel Platini
- Nationality: France
- Year: 1985
Igor Belanov
- Nationality: Soviet Union
- Year: 1986
Ruud Gullit
- Nationality: Netherlands
- Year: 1987
Marco van Basten
- Nationality: Netherlands
- Year: 1988
Marco van Basten
- Nationality: Netherlands
- Year: 1989
Lothar Matthäus
- Nationality: Germany
- Year: 1990
Jean-Pierre Papin
- Nationality: France
- Year: 1991
Marco van Basten
- Nationality: Netherlands
- Year: 1992
Roberto Baggio
- Nationality: Italy
- Year: 1993
Hristo Stoichkov
- Nationality: Bulgaria
- Year: 1994
George Weah
- Nationality: Liberia
- Year: 1995
Matthias Sammer
- Nationality: Germany
- Year: 1996
Ronaldo
- Nationality: Brazil
- Year: 1997
Zinedine Zidane
- Nationality: France
- Year: 1998
Rivaldo
- Nationality: Brazil
- Year: 1999
Luís Figo
- Nationality: Portugal
- Year: 2000
Michael Owen
- Nationality: England
- Year: 2001
Ronaldo
- Nationality: Brazil
- Year: 2002
Pavel Nedvěd
- Nationality: Czechia
- Year: 2003
Andriy Shevchenko
- Nationality: Ukraine
- Year: 2004
Ronaldinho
- Nationality: Brazil
- Year: 2005
Fabio Cannavaro
- Nationality: Italy
- Year: 2006
Kaká
- Nationality: Brazil
- Year: 2007
Cristiano Ronaldo
- Nationality: Portugal
- Year: 2008
Lionel Messi
- Nationality: Argentina
- Year: 2009
Lionel Messi
- Nationality: Argentina
- Year: 2010
Lionel Messi
- Nationality: Argentina
- Year: 2011
Lionel Messi
- Nationality: Argentina
- Year: 2012
Cristiano Ronaldo
- Nationality: Portugal
- Year: 2013
Cristiano Ronaldo
- Nationality: Portugal
- Year: 2014
Lionel Messi
- Nationality: Argentina
- Year: 2015
Cristiano Ronaldo
- Nationality: Portugal
- Year: 2016
Cristiano Ronaldo
- Nationality: Portugal
- Year: 2017
Luka Modric
- Nationality: Croatia
- Year: 2018
Lionel Messi
- Nationality: Argentina
- Year: 2019
Not awarded
- Nationality: ——
- Year: 2020
Lionel Messi
- Nationality: Argentina
- Year: 2021
Karim Benzema
- Nationality: France
- Year: 2022
Lionel Messi
- Nationality: Argentina
- Year: 2023

ALSO READ: “What A Great Victory..” – Lionel Messi Reacts After Barcelona Defeated Real Madrid 4-0 In El Classico

Unnati is a passionate cricket writer with a deep love and understanding of the game. As a female cricket writer, she brings a unique perspective to the sport, having had to overcome various challenges to pursue her passion for cricket. Growing up, Unnati developed a love for cricket by watching matches with her family. She was always fascinated by the way the game was played, and would often spend hours reading about cricket, analyzing matches, and learning more about the sport. However, as a female in a male-dominated industry, she faced numerous obstacles to pursue her passion for cricket writing. Despite this, Unnati persevered and became an accomplished writer in the field. Unnati’s writing style is engaging and insightful, with a keen eye for detail and a deep understanding of the nuances of the game. Her articles are known for their depth of analysis, and she is often sought after for her strong opinions on the sport. Unnati has a unique ability to break down complex ideas and make them accessible to a wide audience, which has helped her build a large following of readers.

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