Insight Real Ballon d’Or Facts:
The Ballon d’Or
The Ballon d’Or is an annual football award presented by French news magazine France Football since 1956. It is widely considered to be the most prestigious individual award in the sport. The award honours the male player deemed to have performed the best over the previous year, based on voting by football journalists.
History
The Ballon d’Or was originally awarded only to players from Europe, but in 1995 it was expanded to include all players from any origin that have been active at European clubs. After 2007, coaches and captains of national teams were also given the right to vote.
The first winner of the Ballon d’Or was Stanley Matthews, a winger for Blackpool and England. Matthews won the award again in 1965, becoming the only player to win the award twice.
The most successful player in Ballon d’Or history is Lionel Messi, who has won the award a record 7 times. Messi won his first Ballon d’Or in 2009, and has won it every year since 2015.
Other players who have won the Ballon d’Or multiple times include Cristiano Ronaldo (5), Johan Cruyff (3), Michel Platini (3), and Zinedine Zidane (3).
List of Players Winning Total Ballon d’Or:
Here is a list of players who have won the Ballon d’Or a total of 5 or more times:
Lionel Messi (7)
Cristiano Ronaldo (5)
Johan Cruyff (3)
Michel Platini (3)
Zinedine Zidane (3)
Countries with Highest Ballon d’Or Winners:
Here is a list of countries with the highest number of Ballon d’Or winners:
Argentina (8)
Portugal (7)
Netherlands (3)
France (3)
Germany (2)
Clubs with Highest Ballon d’Or Winners:
Here is a list of clubs with the highest number of Ballon d’Or winners:
Barcelona (12)
Real Madrid (11)
Juventus (8)
Milan (8)
Bayern Munich (5)
How Ballon d’Or Winner is Decided:
The Ballon d’Or winner is decided by a vote of international football journalists. Each journalist votes for their top 5 players, and the player with the most points wins the award.
The voting is conducted in two stages. In the first stage, journalists vote for their top 5 players. The top 30 players with the most votes advance to the second stage. In the second stage, journalists vote for their top 3 players. The player with the most votes wins the Ballon d’Or.
The Ballon d’Or is one of the most prestigious individual awards in football. It is a testament to the skill and achievements of the players who have won it.
Here are some Real Ballon d’Or facts:
- The Ballon d’Or is named after the French football magazine France Football. The magazine was founded in 1946 by Gabriel Hanot, a French journalist. Hanot was a major proponent of the Ballon d’Or, and he helped to organize the first award ceremony in 1956.
- The Ballon d’Or is made of gold and is 23 centimeters in height. The award is made by the jewelry company Mellerio dits Meller. The trophy is a golden ball with a player’s name engraved on it.
- The Ballon d’Or is presented at a gala dinner in Paris. The gala dinner is held in Paris, France, usually in December. The dinner is attended by some of the biggest names in football, as well as journalists and other dignitaries.
- The Ballon d’Or is considered to be the most prestigious individual award in football. The award is often seen as a proxy for the FIFA World Player of the Year award, which was discontinued in 2009. The Ballon d’Or is voted on by a panel of international journalists, and it is considered to be one of the highest honors that a footballer can achieve.
- The Ballon d’Or has been criticized for being too European-centric. Most of the winners of the Ballon d’Or have been European players. This has led to some criticism that the award is not truly international.
- There have been calls to change the voting system for the Ballon d’Or. Some people believe that the current voting system is not fair, as it gives too much weight to the votes of European journalists. There have been calls to change the voting system to make it more transparent and fair.
- The Ballon d’Or is a valuable marketing tool for players and clubs. Winning the Ballon d’Or can help to boost a player’s commercial appeal. It can also help to increase the profile of a club.
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