Ballon d’Or: Winners, Records, History and How Voting Works

The Ballon d’Or is one of football’s most recognised individual awards, honouring the players whose performances, influence and achievements stand out across a season. France Football created the award in 1956, and its history now stretches from Stanley Matthews, the first men’s winner, to the modern era of Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo, Ousmane Dembélé and the Ballon d’Or Féminin.

This guide brings together the Ballon d’Or winners, major records, voting system, eligibility changes and the history behind the award. For the current edition and changing shortlist information, see SportPesa Kenya’s Ballon d’Or 2026 nominees coverage.

The Ballon d’Or is an annual football award organised by France Football. Under the current rules, it recognises the best male and female players in the world without restriction by nationality or league. The award is decided by an international jury of specialised football journalists, who rank players from a shortlist using defined performance criteria.

The award did not always have the same eligibility rules. When it was created in 1956, it was limited to European players competing in European leagues. In 1995 it opened to players of every nationality, provided they played for a European club. Since 2007, the geographic restriction has been removed, allowing players from anywhere in the world to be considered.

For wider player, club and competition coverage, visit SportPesa Kenya’s football hub.

Under the current Ballon d’Or regulations, the men’s award is decided by journalists representing countries in the top 100 of the FIFA men’s ranking, while the women’s award uses representatives from the top 50 of the FIFA women’s ranking. Each juror selects ten players from a 30-player shortlist and ranks them from first to tenth.

The player with the highest total wins. If two players finish level on points, the first tie-breaker is the number of first-place votes. If they are still level, second-place votes are compared, followed by third-place votes and so on.

France Football lists three Ballon d’Or criteria in order of importance:

·       Individual performances, including decisive and impressive displays.

·       Collective performances and trophies won.

·       Class and fair play.

The order matters: individual performance is considered first. Since 2022, the award has also been assessed over a football season rather than a calendar year, which makes the relevant club and international competitions part of one defined evaluation period.

Lionel Messi holds the men’s Ballon d’Or record with eight wins. Cristiano Ronaldo is second with five. Johan Cruyff, Michel Platini and Marco van Basten each won three times.

Two of the modern players regularly associated with the award are Lamine Yamal and Kylian Mbappé. Their permanent player pages cover career records and achievements, while annual Ballon d’Or pages should handle changing nominee and ranking information.

The men’s Ballon d’Or has been awarded every year since 1956 except 2020, when no award was presented. The table below lists every completed edition through 2025.

The Ballon d’Or Féminin was introduced in 2018. Ada Hegerberg won the first edition, while Aitana Bonmatí became the first woman to win the award three times after victories in 2023, 2024 and 2025.

1956: the first Ballon d’Or. France Football created the award and Stanley Matthews became its first winner.

1995: eligibility expanded. Players of any nationality became eligible, provided they were playing for a European club. George Weah became the first African winner that year.

2007: the award became fully global. The remaining geographic restriction was removed, allowing the award to recognise the best player in the world regardless of where they played.

2018: the women’s award began. The Ballon d’Or Féminin was introduced, with Ada Hegerberg winning the inaugural trophy.

2020: no award. The Ballon d’Or was not awarded in 2020.

2022: the assessment period changed. The award moved from a calendar-year basis to a football-season reference period, with individual performance placed first in the judging criteria.

The evergreen Ballon d’Or page should not be rewritten around every ceremony. Nominees, rankings, ceremony times and the identity of the latest winner are time-sensitive searches, so they work better as annual supporting stories that link back to this permanent guide.

For example, SportPesa Kenya’s Ballon d’Or 2026 nominees page owns the current shortlist intent, while this guide remains focused on the award’s permanent history, records and rules. That separation makes it easier for readers to find the answer they need without mixing historical information with changing ceremony updates.

Lionel Messi holds the men’s record with eight Ballon d’Or wins. Cristiano Ronaldo is second with five.

Stanley Matthews won the first men’s Ballon d’Or in 1956.

Under the current rules, specialised football journalists vote. The men’s jury represents countries in the top 100 of the FIFA ranking, while the women’s jury represents the top 50.

The current men’s and women’s Ballon d’Or shortlists each contain 30 players.

Each juror ranks ten players. The positions receive 15, 12, 10, 8, 7, 5, 4, 3, 2 and 1 point respectively.

No. The Ballon d’Or was not awarded in 2020.

Yes. Since 2007, the award has had no restriction based on where a player competes.

The Ballon d’Or Féminin is the women’s version of the award. It was first presented in 2018, when Ada Hegerberg won the inaugural trophy.

SportPesa Kenya publishes year-specific Ballon d’Or coverage for the current shortlist, rankings and ceremony developments, while this page keeps the permanent history and records.

The Ballon d’Or has developed from a European football award launched in 1956 into a global reference point for individual excellence. Its winners list connects generations of football history, while the current voting system places individual performance first, followed by team achievements and fair play. Use this guide for the permanent Ballon d’Or winners, records, history and voting rules, and follow SportPesa Kenya’s current-year football coverage for changing nominees, rankings and ceremony updates.