Ballon d’Or 2022
The "Ballon d’Or" award has been given since 1956 as a trophy for the best football player in one year. Sports journalists around the world have the right to vote, and since 2007, coaches and captains of national teams have been asked to vote as well. The award was originally given to players of European descent, in 1995 to all players who play in European teams, and in 2007 all professional footballers around the world were included in the selection. The award was under the auspices of FIFA in the period from 2010 to 2015, and in 2016 it returned under the auspices of "France Football".
English football player Stanley Matthews is the first winner of the prestigious trophy, George Weah is the first non-European, and Lionel Messi is the record holder by the number of "Ballon d’Or" won.
With his magic, Lionel Messi has been pushing the boundaries of football for 15 years and makes every fan fall in love with this sport again. The Argentine won a record sixth " Ballon d’Or " last year, thus laying new foundations and arguments in the debate about the best football player in the history of this game.
Messi has returned to the top of world football after a three-year break and is the only one to have won this trophy four years in a row (2009, 2010, 2011, 2012).
Behind the Barcelona player in the winning list for the " Ballon d’Or " are Cristiano Ronaldo with five, Platini, Cruyff and Van Basten with three, and then Ronaldo, Di Stefano, Rummenigge, Keegan and Beckenbauer with two trophies each.
The list of extraordinary players who did not add the " Ballon d’Or " to their showcase seems unreal. As mentioned earlier in the text, until 1995, only Europeans received this recognition. Maradona and Pele are in the company of football players without the "Golden Ball", according to many, the best football players in the history of sports. The list also includes: Buffon, Kahn, Maldini, Moore, Cantona, Xavi, Iniesta, Henry, Puskas, Klinsmann, Raul ...
FIFA decided not to award the recognition given to the best football player in the world in 2020 for the first time in history, and cited the "lack of fair conditions" due to the interruption of the season for several months due to the corona pandemic virus as the main reason. Poland is a country where there is extreme resentment on this occasion, and how could it not be when Robert Lewandowski plays his best season especially at a time when Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi, both club-wise and individually, are not at the levels that were characteristic of them years ago. Beside Lewandowski Karim Benzema was considered as potential winner.
The Premier League also has a lot to offer. Candidates would, of course, come from the ranks of the champion team, with the possible exception of Kevin de Bruyne. The Belgian could make up for the loss in relation to the Liverpool trio Muhammed Salah, Roberto Firmino, Sadio Mane only with City winning the Champions League. However, Lewandowski and Benzema are older than all these players and it will be harder for them to maintain the form for the next season. Probably these 4 players from Premier League will be main candidates for winning Ballon d’Or in 2021 of course with Messi and C.Ronaldo included. Mbappe and Neymar are always among the best but they will need to win UEFA Champions League with PSG to be considered as serios contenders for this award.
There have always been disagreements and doubts about the best football player. Football players raise the bar of expectations from year to year, so the level of talent and success breaks all boundaries.
It is difficult to determine all the criteria and their meanings that are taken into account for choosing the best player in the world.
The award is individual and is awarded annually, but it is an inevitable argument for team (club and national team) success. Also, statistics, which many rightly hate, must be taken into account. There are also recognitions of league and cup competitions, the influence of football players on the game, but also the subjective feeling of voters
Whoever the winner of the Ballon d'Or may be, always check out the best bookmakers to get the highest odds.
We also compare the odds at Africa Cup of Nations.