
<p><strong><a href="https://worldsoccertalk.com/tag/cristiano-ronaldo/">Cristiano Ronaldo</a> and <a href="https://worldsoccertalk.com/tag/lionel-messi/">Lionel Messi</a> are once again at the center of soccer’s greatest debate as France Football introduces a special award celebrating the most iconic Ballon d’Or-winning performances in history.</strong> The new initiative brings together legends from different generations, allowing supporters to revisit some of the sport’s most memorable individual achievements and decide which deserves the ultimate recognition.</p>



<p>The announcement comes as the prestigious award celebrates its 70th anniversary in 2026. However, the format introduces an unusual twist that could make the competition far more unpredictable than a conventional vote for the greatest player of all time.</p>



<p>France Soccer, the magazine behind the <a href="https://worldsoccertalk.com/tag/ballon-dor/">Ballon d’Or</a> since 1956, has unveiled the <strong>Ballon d’Or Of All Time (B.O.A.T.)</strong>, a public vote designed to identify the greatest individual Ballon d’Or-winning year in soccer history. Rather than simply selecting a player, voters must decide which specific winning campaign deserves to stand above the rest.</p>



<p>The distinction matters because a player with multiple Ballon d’Or trophies has several eligible seasons competing for votes. Messi, for example, has eight winning years represented, while Ronaldo has five, potentially dividing support between their individual achievements.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img loading="lazy" width="1920" height="1080" src="https://media.worldsoccertalk.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/6/2026/05/05130005/ronaldo-messi-2-1920x1080.webp" alt="ronaldo messi" class="wp-image-641120"><figcaption>FIFA Ballon d’Or nominees Lionel Messi of Argentina and FC Barcelona (L) and Cristiano Ronaldo of Portugal and Real Madrid (R)</figcaption></figure>



<h2>Full list of the 10 nominees</h2>



<p>The shortlist features <strong>10 legendary players who have won the Ballon d’Or at least twice</strong> during their careers.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-table"><table><tbody><tr><th>Player</th><th>Country</th><th>Wins</th><th>Winning Years</th></tr><tr><td>Lionel Messi</td><td>Argentina</td><td>8</td><td>2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2015, 2019, 2021, 2023</td></tr><tr><td>Cristiano Ronaldo</td><td>Portugal</td><td>5</td><td>2008, 2013, 2014, 2016, 2017</td></tr><tr><td>Michel Platini</td><td>France</td><td>3</td><td>1983, 1984, 1985</td></tr><tr><td>Johan Cruyff</td><td>Netherlands</td><td>3</td><td>1971, 1973, 1974</td></tr><tr><td>Marco van Basten</td><td>Netherlands</td><td>3</td><td>1988, 1989, 1992</td></tr><tr><td>Alfredo Di Stefano</td><td>Spain</td><td>2</td><td>1957, 1959</td></tr><tr><td>Franz Beckenbauer</td><td>West Germany</td><td>2</td><td>1972, 1976</td></tr><tr><td>Kevin Keegan</td><td>England</td><td>2</td><td>1978, 1979</td></tr><tr><td>Karl-Heinz Rummenigge</td><td>West Germany</td><td>2</td><td>1980, 1981</td></tr><tr><td>Ronaldo Nazario</td><td>Brazil</td><td>2</td><td>1997, 2002</td></tr></tbody></table></figure>



<p>Messi leads the historical standings with eight Ballon d’Or victories, followed by Ronaldo with five. Platini, Cruyff and Van Basten each collected three trophies, while the remaining five nominees won twice.</p>



<h2>Eligibility rules: Why some legends are missing</h2>



<p>The organizers restricted eligibility to players who have won the Ballon d’Or <strong>at least twice</strong>, immediately excluding famous one-time winners such as Zinedine Zidane, Ronaldinho and Eusebio. Pele and Diego Maradona are also absent, but for a different historical reason.</p>



<p>During their playing careers, the Ballon d’Or was restricted to European players, meaning the two South American icons were not eligible under the award’s original rules. The shortlist therefore reflects the history and eligibility criteria of the traditional prize rather than a comprehensive ranking of every player who has ever played the game.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img loading="lazy" width="1920" height="1080" src="https://media.worldsoccertalk.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/6/2026/09/18144507/ballon-dor-1-1920x1080.webp" alt="ballon d&apos;or" class="wp-image-675879"><figcaption>A general view of the Ballon D’Or trophy</figcaption></figure>



<h2>Voting deadline, cost and prize explained</h2>



<p>Fans can vote through the <em>official Ballon d’Or website</em> until <strong>October 27, 2026, at 11:59 p.m. Paris time</strong>. Each vote costs <strong>€1</strong>, and supporters can submit multiple votes rather than being restricted to a single choice.</p>



<p>According to the published details, participants receive access to an iconic Ballon d’Or photograph and an opportunity to win <strong>two tickets to the 2027 Ballon d’Or ceremony</strong>. The B.O.A.T. results are scheduled to be announced on October 28, two days after the main 2026 ceremony at London’s Palladium on October 26.</p>


Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi headline new Ballon d’Or Of All Time award: Full nominee list, eligibility rules, voting deadline, and prize explained

Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi headline new Ballon d’Or Of All Time award: Full nominee list, eligibility rules, voting deadline, and prize explained - World Soccer Talk

main

<div id="attachment_7098" style="width: 510px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><div><figure class="external-image"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-7098" loading="lazy" class="size-full wp-image-7098" src="/wp-content/uploads/2009/05/ronaldo.jpg" alt="The Kids Are Our Future" width="500" height="332"></figure></div><p id="caption-attachment-7098" class="wp-caption-text">The Kids Are Our Future</p></div>
<p>Football loves dominant sides.</p>
<p>Think of Herbert Chapman’s Arsenal of the 1920s, ravaging England with the WM formation; Real Madrid of the early days of the European Cup, with Alfredo di Stefano and Ferenc Puskas wreaking havoc on unsuspecting continental champions; Liverpool getting comfy on their “fucking perch,” winning four European cups in the span of seven years in the late seventies and early eighties; AC Milan’s post-Berlusconi Dutch delight in the mid to late eighties and early nineties.&nbsp; Dominant sides measure the development of the game as winning ways switch from country to country, club to club.</p>
<p>The Manchester United of recent years are certainly worthy of inclusion among the clubs mentioned above, but as the Premier League trophies pile up, the FA Cup loses its sheen, and England’s footballing strength gets more and more concentrated in the hands of the wealthy few, so grows United’s sense of entitlement.&nbsp; There were several signs of this today when Manchester United defeated its City rivals to all but secure a record 18th league title, what should have been a moment of team solidarity.&nbsp; Certainly Ronaldo whingeing like a git after getting subbed off at the sixtieth minute didn’t exactly inspire, but when Tevez somehow found an ‘I’ in team after scoring United’s second goal, cupping his ears in delight at the director’s box with whom is at odds over his future at the club, it was hard to imagine the neutral giving a round of applause to the nearly-champions.</p>
<p>Compare these antics to Barcelona, United’s competition in the Champions League final and a team seemingly reborn under the youthful tutelage of Pep Guardiola. After a hard-fought two leg enterprise against Chelsea, a club that represents for many over-moneyed and overly-negative English football (and who also drew comparisons to Man United in last year’s CL semi final), Barcelona came out as moral (and actual) victors.&nbsp; Barcelona seem victors in the image department as well: sponsor-less for years, the Catalan club sport UNICEF on their shirts (compared to Man United, sponsored by a failed American investment conglomerate).&nbsp; All this means the Anyone But United crowd will likely be joined by a fair share of footballing neutrals on May 27th.&nbsp; To that end, it’s a shame United’s younger players didn’t show a little more respect to the notion of “team first” today.</p>
<p>Of course no one could argue that arrogance and individualism don’t play a large measure in winning sides; one need only think of Cruiff at Ajax or Giuseppe Meazza at Inter Milan (the latter famously showed up still drunk from carousing the night before, only to score three goals).&nbsp; The difference is that for many, United represent the worst effects of neoliberal commercialization in the Premier League, the pushing of product, the prawn sandwiches, United shirts on sale at Reebok next to the sweatshop shoes.&nbsp; Tevez using his considerable skills in an effort to raise his stock price, and Ronaldo disrespecting his manager and his teammates by throwing a tantrum after a brilliant performance (Ferguson shrugged it off to the media, and with four points to win in three games to secure the title, no wonder)—actions that reduce the game to what Eduardo Galeno called a “showcase of commercial exhibition”—don’t help Manchester United’s image problem.</p>
<p>United’s younger players would do well to help keep their self-interested gait off the pitch, and start acting in ways worthy of the champions they are now almost certain to become.&nbsp; Lord knows the ABU crowd don’t need any more help than Ronaldo has already given them.</p>


Tevez, Ronaldo Give Ammo to the ABU Crowd

Tevez, Ronaldo Give Ammo to the ABU Crowd - World Soccer Talk

Latest news from Alfredo di Stefano. Find out about all the news related to Alfredo di Stefano on worldsoccertalk.com

ALL POSTS TAGGED "Alfredo di Stefano"

News

Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi headline new Ballon d’Or Of All Time award: Full nominee list, eligibility rules, voting deadline, and prize explained

News

Tevez, Ronaldo Give Ammo to the ABU Crowd