Unlike winter sports like ice hockey or fringe sports, football is a global sport with professional leagues in virtually every country. There are more than 125,000 professional players in the world, yet only five players have won the Ballon d’Or, awarded annually to the best player in the world, since 2008. This is in part due to the dominance of strikers Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo, who have won a combined 12 Ballon d’Or awards during this time. (The Ballon d’Or wasn’t awarded in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.)
The following is a closer look at their success over the years as well as the other three players who have won the award since 2008.
1. Lionel Messi
A record seven-time winner of the Ballon d’Or, Messi is the only player to win the award in four consecutive years and is one of a handful of players to win it with different teams. Messi won his first six Ballon d’Or awards with Barcelona and won in 2021 as a member of the French club Paris Saint-Germain F.C.
After finishing second in voting to Ronaldo in 2008, Messi won for the first time in 2009 after helping Barcelona win its first “treble,” which refers to winning three major club titles in Europe (La Liga, the Copa del Rey, and the Champions League). Messi scored 38 goals in 51 matches that season.
Messi cemented his status as the best football player in the world in 2010, winning both the Ballon d’Or and the Golden Shoe award as the top scorer in all of Europe. He won the Ballon d’Or again in 2011 and 2012 and, following a three-year absence, won in 2019. He won the award in 2021, his first year with Paris Saint-Germain, in controversial fashion. Sporting News and Eurosport, among other outlets, felt that Bayern Munich’s Robert Lewandowski was more deserving. Messi even recognized Lewandowski in his acceptance speech.
“I think that you deserve your Ballon d’Or,” Messi said, acknowledging Lewandowski. “Last year everyone was in agreement that you were the winner and I think that France Football should give you the Ballon d’Or that you deserve, and you should have it since you earned it and you won it last year. Hopefully, France Football could deliver it to you, and you can have it in your home.”
2. Luka Modric
The only player to win the Ballon d’Or outside of Messi and Ronaldo since 2008, Luka Modric finished first in voting for the award in 2018. The Croatian star, then a teammate of Ronaldo’s with Real Madrid, was integral to his club team and national team’s success.
Modric won both the Champions League title and Club World Cup with Real Madrid and reached the World Cup Final with Croatia. Modric also won FIFA’s The Best award and was named UEFA’s Men’s Player of the Year for 2017-18. He was one of seven players from Real Madrid who were finalists for the award.
3. Cristiano Ronaldo
A five-time winner of the Ballon d’Or, Ronaldo last won in 2017 with Real Madrid. He also won in 2016, 2014, 2013, and 2008. Ronaldo won four of his five Ballon d’Or awards with Real Madrid and won his first, in 2008, with Manchester United. He was the first Manchester United player to win the award since George Best in 1968.
Ronaldo had one of the best years of his career in 2008 as he scored 42 goals in 49 matches and helped United win the Premiership and the European Cup. Now in his second stint with United, Ronaldo had 497 goals through 645 career domestic club matches before the 2022-23 season. He scored 46 (2013), 41 (2014), 48 (2016), and 44 (2017) goals in the other four seasons in which he won the Ballon d’Or.
4. Kaká
An attacking midfielder from Brazil, Kaká is one of only eight players in history to win the Ballon d’Or, UEFA Champions League, and FIFA World Cup. He won the award in 2007 while playing with AC Milan. Kaká received 1,047 votes, beating out perennial favorites Messi and Ronaldo, who received 504 and 426 votes, respectively.
Kaká was also named Serie A Footballer of the Year in 2007. He scored 149 goals through 461 career matches with Brazil, Serie A, La Liga, and MLS.
5. Fabio Cannavaro
The last defender to win the Ballon d’Or, Fabio Cannavaro won the award in 2006 after receiving 173 total points, including 20 first-place votes. His Italian compatriot and Juventus teammate Gianluigi Buffon finished second in the voting with 124 points, while French striker Thierry Henry finished third with 121 points.
Cannavaro helped lead Juventus to a Serie A title in 2006, but the team’s championship was later revoked due to its involvement in a match-fixing scandal. Cannavaro also captained Italy to a World Cup title in 2006.