Ballon d’Or: At the peak of their powers, both Messi and Ronaldo represented the ethos of the two super clubs of European football: Barcelona and Real Madrid. (Reuters)
The end of an era of unprecedented dominance by two footballers, whose endearing rivalry has captivated the sport for more than a decade, will be marked late on Monday as the Ballon d’Or award is presented to the best footballer in the world during a ceremony in Paris.
Neither Lionel Messi nor Cristiano Ronaldo are nominated to win the prestigious award this year, after combining to win the award 13 times in the last 16 years.
Instead, this year it is Real Madrid and Brazil winger Vinicius Jr. who is the favourite to win the most prestigious individual prize in football.
At the peak of their powers, both Messi and Ronaldo represented the ethos of the two super clubs of European football: Barcelona and Real Madrid. Their performances with their countries to win international events – including Messi’s latest star turn at the 2022 FIFA World Cup often also played a role in being recognised as the best in the world.
| YEAR | WINNER | TEAMS |
| 2008 | Cristiano Ronaldo | Manchester United (POR) |
| 2009 | Lionel Messi | FC Barcelona (ARG) |
| 2010 | Lionel Messi | FC Barcelona (ARG) |
| 2011 | Lionel Messi | FC Barcelona (ARG) |
| 2012 | Lionel Messi | FC Barcelona (ARG) |
| 2013 | Cristiano Ronaldo | Real Madrid (POR) |
| 2014 | Cristiano Ronaldo | Real Madrid (POR) |
| 2015 | Lionel Messi | FC Barcelona (ARG) |
| 2016 | Cristiano Ronaldo | Real Madrid (POR) |
| 2017 | Cristiano Ronaldo | Real Madrid (POR) |
| 2018 | Luka Modric | Real Madrid (CRO) |
| 2019 | Lionel Messi | FC Barcelona (ARG) |
| 2021 | Lionel Messi | Paris Saint Germain (ARG) |
| 2022 | Karim Benzema | Real Madrid (FRA) |
| 2023 | Lionel Messi | Inter Miami (ARG) |
In that same period, Real Madrid have also dominated the award. Outside of Messi and Ronaldo, only Luka Modric (2018) and Karim Benzema (2022) have been able to win the prize since 2008, with the award being cancelled in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Both players were at Real Madrid at the time and this year’s favourite also plays in the Spanish capital.
Monday’s award is being handed out for the 2023-24 season, in which Madrid won both the La Liga and the Champions League, and Vinicius Jr. played a talismanic role in the triumphs. Among the others in the fray are Jude Bellingham, Vinicius’s Madrid teammate who also reached the Euros final with England, and midfielder Rodri, who was an ever-present in the Manchester City team that won the Premier League and the Spain team that won the Euros.
