Lionel Messi joins Gianluigi Buffon among the oldest top-ten Ballon d’Or finishers in history

Lionel Messi has added another milestone to his career by finishing fifth in the 2026 Ballon d’Or at 39 years and four months old. The Inter Miami captain did not attend the gala in London, but his place among the best players of the year has put him in the history books of the award.

After finishing in fifth position, the Argentine became the third-oldest player ever to finish inside the top ten of the Ballon d’Or. Only Gianluigi Buffon and Stanley Matthews, the winner of the first edition, were older when they reached that mark.

Buffon was 39 years and 10 months old when he reached the top ten in 2017, just a few months older than Messi now, while Matthews was 41 years old when he won the inaugural award in 1956.

Harry Kane won the award, with Kylian Mbappe second, Lamine Yamal third and Rodri fourth, one place ahead of Messi. The Argentine’s fifth place came after a standout World Cup in which he scored eight goals and added four assists, won the Silver Ball and led Argentina to the final. With eight Ballon d’Or trophies already in his collection, he remains the most decorated player in the history of the award.

How Cristiano Ronaldo compares

For comparison, the last time Cristiano Ronaldo finished among the top ten players in the Ballon d’Or was in 2021, when he placed sixth while playing for Manchester United. The Portuguese forward was 36 years and nine months old when the ceremony took place in November of that year, more than two and a half years younger than Messi is now.

That remains the last time the five-time winner cracked the top ten. He has remained outside it in every edition since, while Messi, who won the award in 2021 and again in 2023, has returned to the top five at an age when Ronaldo was no longer in the conversation for the award.

Every Ballon d’Or finish of Lionel Messi

Messi’s fifth-place finish in 2026 is his 17th appearance in the Ballon d’Or voting, a career that includes eight wins, the most in the history of the award. These are all of his results: