Ballon d'Or (1956–2009)

This article is about the former award. For the current award, see FIFA Ballon d'Or. For the new European Player of the Year award, see UEFA Best Player in Europe Award.
Michel Platini, pictured with the 1985 Ballon d'Or, won the award three times in succession.

The Ballon d'Or (French pronunciation: ​[balɔ̃ dɔʁ]; "Golden Ball"), often referred to as the European Footballer of the Year award, was an annual association football award presented by France Football between 1956 and 2009. Conceived by chief magazine writer Gabriel Hanot, the award honoured the player deemed to have performed the best over the previous year, based on a voting by Europe-based journalists. Originally, only European players were in contention for the Ballon d'Or, but from 1995 all players at European clubs were eligible.[1][2]

Stanley Matthews of Blackpool was the inaugural winner of the Ballon d'Or.[3] Milan's George Weah, the only African recipient, became the first non-European to win the award in the year the rules of eligibility were changed.[2] Ronaldo of Internazionale became the first South American winner two years later.[2] The final recipient of the Ballon d'Or was Barcelona's Lionel Messi.[4] Three players won the award three times each: Johan Cruyff of Ajax and Barcelona, Michel Platini of Juventus, and Marco van Basten of Milan. With seven awards each, Dutch and German players won the most Ballons d'Or. Italian clubs Juventus and Milan had the most winners respectively; six players won eight awards while playing for each club.[5]

In 2007, the Ballon d'Or changed in scope from an honour bestowed on Europe-based players by Europe-based journalists to one open to all players and voted on by journalists from around the world.[6] It was subsequently merged with a similar award, the FIFA World Player of the Year award, to create the FIFA Ballon d'Or, which has been awarded to the world's best male player since 2010.[7] UEFA created the UEFA Best Player in Europe Award to maintain the prestige of the original Ballon d'Or.[8]

Winners

Year 1st Club Pts 2nd Club Pts 3rd Club Pts
1956  Matthews, StanleyStanley Matthews (ENG) England Blackpool 47  Di Stéfano, AlfredoAlfredo Di Stéfano (ESP) Spain Real Madrid 44  Kopa, RaymondRaymond Kopa (FRA) Spain Real Madrid 33
1957  Di Stéfano, AlfredoAlfredo Di Stéfano (ESP)[note 1] Spain Real Madrid 72  Wright, BillyBilly Wright (ENG) England Wolverhampton Wanderers 19  Edwards, DuncanDuncan Edwards (ENG)
 Kopa, RaymondRaymond Kopa (FRA)		 England Manchester United
Spain Real Madrid		 16
1958  Kopa, RaymondRaymond Kopa (FRA) Spain Real Madrid 71  Rahn, HelmutHelmut Rahn (FRG) West Germany Rot-Weiss Essen 40  Fontaine, JustJust Fontaine (FRA) France Stade de Reims 23
1959  Di Stéfano, AlfredoAlfredo Di Stéfano (ESP) Spain Real Madrid 80  Kopa, RaymondRaymond Kopa (FRA) Spain Real Madrid 42  Charles, JohnJohn Charles (WAL) Italy Juventus 24
1960  Suárez, LuisLuis Suárez (ESP) Spain Barcelona 54  Puskás, FerencFerenc Puskás (HUN) Spain Real Madrid 37  Seeler, UweUwe Seeler (FRG) West Germany Hamburg 33
1961  Sívori, OmarOmar Sívori (ITA)[note 2] Italy Juventus 46  Suárez, LuisLuis Suárez (ESP) Italy Internazionale 40  Haynes, JohnnyJohnny Haynes (ENG) England Fulham 22
1962  Masopust, JosefJosef Masopust (TCH) Czechoslovakia Dukla Prague 65  Eusébio (POR) Portugal Benfica 53  Schnellinger, Karl-HeinzKarl-Heinz Schnellinger (FRG) West Germany Köln 33
1963  Yashin, LevLev Yashin (URS) Soviet Union Dynamo Moscow 73  Rivera, GianniGianni Rivera (ITA) Italy Milan 53  Greaves, JimmyJimmy Greaves (ENG) England Tottenham Hotspur 33
1964  Law, DenisDenis Law (SCO) England Manchester United 61  Suárez, LuisLuis Suárez (ESP) Italy Internazionale 43  Amancio (ESP) Spain Real Madrid 38
1965  Eusébio (POR) Portugal Benfica 67  Facchetti, GiacintoGiacinto Facchetti (ITA) Italy Internazionale 59  Suárez, LuisLuis Suárez (ESP) Italy Internazionale 45
1966  Charlton, BobbyBobby Charlton (ENG) England Manchester United 81  Eusébio (POR) Portugal Benfica 80  Beckenbauer, FranzFranz Beckenbauer (FRG) West Germany Bayern Munich 59
1967  Albert, FlóriánFlórián Albert (HUN) Hungary Ferencvárosi TC 68  Charlton, BobbyBobby Charlton (ENG) England Manchester United 40  Johnstone, JimmyJimmy Johnstone (SCO) Scotland Celtic 39
1968  Best, GeorgeGeorge Best (NIR) England Manchester United 61  Charlton, BobbyBobby Charlton (ENG) England Manchester United 53  Džajić, DraganDragan Džajić (YUG) Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia Red Star Belgrade 46
1969  Rivera, GianniGianni Rivera (ITA) Italy Milan 83  Riva, LuigiLuigi Riva (ITA) Italy Cagliari 79  Müller, GerdGerd Müller (FRG) West Germany Bayern Munich 38
1970  Müller, GerdGerd Müller (FRG) West Germany Bayern Munich 77  Moore, BobbyBobby Moore (ENG) England West Ham United 70  Riva, LuigiLuigi Riva (ITA) Italy Cagliari 65
1971  Cruyff, JohanJohan Cruyff (NED) Netherlands Ajax 116  Mazzola, SandroSandro Mazzola (ITA) Italy Internazionale 57  Best, GeorgeGeorge Best (NIR) England Manchester United 56
1972  Beckenbauer, FranzFranz Beckenbauer (FRG) West Germany Bayern Munich 81  Müller, GerdGerd Müller (FRG)
 Netzer, GünterGünter Netzer (FRG)		 West Germany Bayern Munich
West Germany Borussia Mönchengladbach		 79 &
—
 &
—
 &
—
1973  Cruyff, JohanJohan Cruyff (NED)[note 3] Spain Barcelona 96  Zoff, DinoDino Zoff (ITA) Italy Juventus 47  Müller, GerdGerd Müller (FRG) West Germany Bayern Munich 44
1974  Cruyff, JohanJohan Cruyff (NED) Spain Barcelona 116  Beckenbauer, FranzFranz Beckenbauer (FRG) West Germany Bayern Munich 105  Deyna, KazimierzKazimierz Deyna (POL) Poland Legia Warsaw 35
1975  Blokhin, OlegOleg Blokhin (URS) Soviet Union Dynamo Kyiv 122  Beckenbauer, FranzFranz Beckenbauer (FRG) West Germany Bayern Munich 42  Cruyff, JohanJohan Cruyff (NED) Spain Barcelona 27
1976  Beckenbauer, FranzFranz Beckenbauer (FRG) West Germany Bayern Munich 91  Rensenbrink, RobRob Rensenbrink (NED) Belgium Anderlecht 75  Viktor, IvoIvo Viktor (TCH) Czechoslovakia Dukla Prague 52
1977  Simonsen, AllanAllan Simonsen (DEN) West Germany Borussia Mönchengladbach 74  Keegan, KevinKevin Keegan (ENG)[note 4] West Germany Hamburg 71  Platini, MichelMichel Platini (FRA) France Nancy 70
1978  Keegan, KevinKevin Keegan (ENG) West Germany Hamburg 87  Krankl, HansHans Krankl (AUT) Spain Barcelona 81  Rensenbrink, RobRob Rensenbrink (NED) Belgium Anderlecht 50
1979  Keegan, KevinKevin Keegan (ENG) West Germany Hamburg 118  Rummenigge, Karl-HeinzKarl-Heinz Rummenigge (FRG) West Germany Bayern Munich 52  Krol, RuudRuud Krol (NED) Netherlands Ajax 41
1980  Rummenigge, Karl-HeinzKarl-Heinz Rummenigge (FRG) West Germany Bayern Munich 122  Schuster, BerndBernd Schuster (FRG) Spain Barcelona 34  Platini, MichelMichel Platini (FRA) France Saint-Étienne 33
1981  Rummenigge, Karl-HeinzKarl-Heinz Rummenigge (FRG) West Germany Bayern Munich 106  Breitner, PaulPaul Breitner (FRG) West Germany Bayern Munich 64  Schuster, BerndBernd Schuster (FRG) Spain Barcelona 39
1982  Rossi, PaoloPaolo Rossi (ITA) Italy Juventus 115  Giresse, AlainAlain Giresse (FRA) France Bordeaux 64  Boniek, ZbigniewZbigniew Boniek (POL) Italy Juventus 53
1983  Platini, MichelMichel Platini (FRA) Italy Juventus 110  Dalglish, KennyKenny Dalglish (SCO) England Liverpool 26  Simonsen, AllanAllan Simonsen (DEN) Denmark Vejle 25
1984  Platini, MichelMichel Platini (FRA) Italy Juventus 110  Tigana, JeanJean Tigana (FRA) France Bordeaux 57  Elkjær, PrebenPreben Elkjær (DEN) Italy Verona 48
1985  Platini, MichelMichel Platini (FRA) Italy Juventus 127  Elkjær, PrebenPreben Elkjær (DEN) Italy Verona 71  Schuster, BerndBernd Schuster (FRG) Spain Barcelona 46
1986  Belanov, IgorIgor Belanov (URS) Soviet Union Dynamo Kyiv 84  Lineker, GaryGary Lineker (ENG)[note 5] Spain Barcelona 62  Butragueño, EmilioEmilio Butragueño (ESP) Spain Real Madrid 59
1987  Gullit, RuudRuud Gullit (NED)[note 6] Italy Milan 106  Futre, PauloPaulo Futre (POR)[note 7] Spain Atlético Madrid 91  Butragueño, EmilioEmilio Butragueño (ESP) Spain Real Madrid 61
1988  Basten, Marco vanMarco van Basten (NED) Italy Milan 129  Gullit, RuudRuud Gullit (NED) Italy Milan 88  Rijkaard, FrankFrank Rijkaard (NED)[note 8] Italy Milan 45
1989  Basten, Marco vanMarco van Basten (NED) Italy Milan 129  Baresi, FrancoFranco Baresi (ITA) Italy Milan 80  Rijkaard, FrankFrank Rijkaard (NED) Italy Milan 43
1990  Matthäus, LotharLothar Matthäus (GER) Italy Internazionale 137  Schillaci, SalvatoreSalvatore Schillaci (ITA) Italy Juventus 84  Brehme, AndreasAndreas Brehme (GER) Italy Internazionale 68
1991  Papin, Jean-PierreJean-Pierre Papin (FRA) France Marseille 141  Savićević, DejanDejan Savićević (YUG)
 Pančev, DarkoDarko Pančev (YUG)
 Matthäus, LotharLothar Matthäus (GER)		 Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia Red Star Belgrade
Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia Red Star Belgrade
Italy Internazionale		 42 &
—
 &
—
 &
—
1992  Basten, Marco vanMarco van Basten (NED) Italy Milan 98  Stoichkov, HristoHristo Stoichkov (BUL) Spain Barcelona 80  Bergkamp, DennisDennis Bergkamp (NED) Netherlands Ajax 53
1993  Baggio, RobertoRoberto Baggio (ITA) Italy Juventus 142  Bergkamp, DennisDennis Bergkamp (NED) Italy Internazionale 83  Cantona, EricEric Cantona (FRA) England Manchester United 34
1994  Stoichkov, HristoHristo Stoichkov (BUL) Spain Barcelona 210  Baggio, RobertoRoberto Baggio (ITA) Italy Juventus 136  Maldini, PaoloPaolo Maldini (ITA) Italy Milan 109
1995  Weah, GeorgeGeorge Weah (LBR)[note 9] Italy Milan 144  Klinsmann, JürgenJürgen Klinsmann (GER) Germany Bayern Munich 108  Litmanen, JariJari Litmanen (FIN) Netherlands Ajax 67
1996  Sammer, MatthiasMatthias Sammer (GER) Germany Borussia Dortmund 144  Ronaldo (BRA)[note 10] Spain Barcelona 143  Shearer, AlanAlan Shearer (ENG) England Newcastle United 107
1997  Ronaldo (BRA)[note 11] Italy Internazionale 222  Mijatović, PredragPredrag Mijatović (SCG) Spain Real Madrid 68  Zidane, ZinedineZinedine Zidane (FRA) Italy Juventus 63
1998  Zidane, ZinedineZinedine Zidane (FRA) Italy Juventus 244  Šuker, DavorDavor Šuker (CRO) Spain Real Madrid 68  Ronaldo (BRA) Italy Internazionale 66
1999  Rivaldo (BRA) Spain Barcelona 219  Beckham, DavidDavid Beckham (ENG) England Manchester United 154  Shevchenko, AndriyAndriy Shevchenko (UKR) Italy Milan 64
2000  Figo, LuísLuís Figo (POR)[note 12] Spain Real Madrid 197  Zidane, ZinedineZinedine Zidane (FRA) Italy Juventus 181  Shevchenko, AndriyAndriy Shevchenko (UKR) Italy Milan 85
2001  Owen, MichaelMichael Owen (ENG) England Liverpool 176  Raúl (ESP) Spain Real Madrid 140  Kahn, OliverOliver Kahn (GER) Germany Bayern Munich 114
2002  Ronaldo (BRA)[note 13] Spain Real Madrid 169  Carlos, RobertoRoberto Carlos (BRA) Spain Real Madrid 145  Kahn, OliverOliver Kahn (GER) Germany Bayern Munich 110
2003  Nedvěd, PavelPavel Nedvěd (CZE) Italy Juventus 190  Henry, ThierryThierry Henry (FRA) England Arsenal 128  Maldini, PaoloPaolo Maldini (ITA) Italy Milan 123
2004  Shevchenko, AndriyAndriy Shevchenko (UKR) Italy Milan 175  Deco (POR)[note 14] Spain Barcelona 139  Ronaldinho (BRA) Spain Barcelona 133
2005  Ronaldinho (BRA) Spain Barcelona 225  Lampard, FrankFrank Lampard (ENG) England Chelsea 148  Gerrard, StevenSteven Gerrard (ENG) England Liverpool 142
2006  Cannavaro, FabioFabio Cannavaro (ITA)[note 15] Spain Real Madrid 173  Buffon, GianluigiGianluigi Buffon (ITA) Italy Juventus 124  Henry, ThierryThierry Henry (FRA) England Arsenal 121
2007  Kaká (BRA) Italy Milan 444  Ronaldo, CristianoCristiano Ronaldo (POR) England Manchester United 277  Messi, LionelLionel Messi (ARG) Spain Barcelona 255
2008  Ronaldo, CristianoCristiano Ronaldo (POR) England Manchester United 446  Messi, LionelLionel Messi (ARG) Spain Barcelona 281  Torres, FernandoFernando Torres (ESP) England Liverpool 179
2009  Messi, LionelLionel Messi (ARG) Spain Barcelona 473  Ronaldo, CristianoCristiano Ronaldo (POR)[note 16] Spain Real Madrid 233  Xavi (ESP) Spain Barcelona 170
Merged with the FIFA World Player of the Year award to create the FIFA Ballon d'Or

Wins by player

Johan Cruyff with the Ballon d'Or in 1971
Player 1st 2nd 3rd
 Platini, MichelMichel Platini (FRA) 3 (1983, 1984, 1985) — 2 (1977, 1980)
 Cruyff, JohanJohan Cruyff (NED) 3 (1971, 1973, 1974) — 1 (1975)
 Basten, Marco vanMarco van Basten (NED) 3 (1988, 1989, 1992) — —
 Beckenbauer, FranzFranz Beckenbauer (FRG) 2 (1972, 1976) 2 (1974, 1975) 1 (1966)
 Ronaldo (BRA) 2 (1997, 2002) 1 (1996) 1 (1998)
 Di Stéfano, AlfredoAlfredo Di Stéfano (ESP) 2 (1957, 1959) 1 (1956) —
 Keegan, KevinKevin Keegan (ENG) 2 (1978, 1979) 1 (1977) —
 Rummenigge, Karl-HeinzKarl-Heinz Rummenigge (FRG) 2 (1980, 1981) 1 (1979) —
 Suárez, LuisLuis Suárez (ESP) 1 (1960) 2 (1961, 1964) 1 (1965)
 Eusébio (POR) 1 (1965) 2 (1962, 1966) —
 Charlton, BobbyBobby Charlton (ENG) 1 (1966) 2 (1967, 1968) —
 Ronaldo, CristianoCristiano Ronaldo (POR)[note 17] 1 (2008) 2 (2007, 2009) —
 Kopa, RaymondRaymond Kopa (FRA) 1 (1958) 1 (1959) 2 (1956, 1957)
 Müller, GerdGerd Müller (FRG) 1 (1970) 1 (1972) 2 (1969, 1973)
 Zidane, ZinedineZinedine Zidane (FRA) 1 (1998) 1 (2000) 1 (1997)
 Messi, LionelLionel Messi (ARG)[note 18] 1 (2009) 1 (2008) 1 (2007)
 Best, GeorgeGeorge Best (NIR) 1 (1968) 1 (1971) —
 Rivera, GianniGianni Rivera (ITA) 1 (1969) 1 (1963) —
 Gullit, RuudRuud Gullit (NED) 1 (1987) 1 (1988) —
 Matthäus, LotharLothar Matthäus (GER) 1 (1990) 1 (1991) —
 Baggio, RobertoRoberto Baggio (ITA) 1 (1993) 1 (1994) —
 Stoichkov, HristoHristo Stoichkov (BUL) 1 (1994) 1 (1992) —
 Shevchenko, AndriyAndriy Shevchenko (UKR) 1 (2004) — 2 (1999, 2000)
 Simonsen, AllanAllan Simonsen (DEN) 1 (1977) — 1 (1983)
 Ronaldinho (BRA) 1 (2005) — 1 (2004)

Wins by country

Country Players Total
 Germany 5 7
 Netherlands 3 7
 France 4 6
 Italy 5 5
 Brazil 4 5
 England 4 5
 Portugal 3 3
 Soviet Union 3 3
 Spain 2 3
 Czech Republic 2 2
 Argentina 1 1
 Bulgaria 1 1
 Denmark 1 1
 Hungary 1 1
 Liberia 1 1
 Northern Ireland 1 1
 Scotland 1 1
 Ukraine 1 1

Wins by club

Club Players Total
Italy Juventus 6 8
Italy Milan 6 8
Spain Barcelona 6 7
Spain Real Madrid 5 6
Germany Bayern Munich 3 5
England Manchester United 4 4
Ukraine Dynamo Kyiv 2 2
Italy Internazionale 2 2
Germany Hamburg 1 2
Netherlands Ajax 1 1
Portugal Benfica 1 1
England Blackpool 1 1
Germany Borussia Dortmund 1 1
Germany Borussia Mönchengladbach 1 1
Czech Republic Dukla Prague 1 1
Russia Dynamo Moscow 1 1
Hungary Ferencváros 1 1
England Liverpool 1 1
France Marseille 1 1

Additional awards

A special Ballon d'Or, under the name Super Ballon d'Or, was awarded to Alfredo Di Stéfano in 1989, after he surpassed Johan Cruyff and Michel Platini in France Football's voting.[20] A decade later, France Football elected Pelé the Football Player of the Century after consulting their former Ballon d'Or recipients. Among the 34 previous winners, 30 cast their votes; Stanley Matthews, Omar Sívori, and George Best abstained, and Lev Yashin had died. Each voter was allotted five votes worth up to five points; however, Di Stéfano only chose a first place, Platini a first and second place, and George Weah two players for fifth place. Pelé was named the greatest by 17 voters, receiving almost double the number of points earned by the runner-up, Diego Maradona.[21]

Football Player of the Century
Player Pts 1st 2nd 3rd 4th 5th
 Pelé (BRA) 122 17 5 4 2 1
 Diego Maradona (ARG) 65 3 6 5 5 1
 Johan Cruyff (NED) 62 1 4 7 9 2
 Alfredo Di Stéfano (ESP) 44 4 3 3 1 1
 Michel Platini (FRA) 40 1 5 1 3 6

To coincide with the 60th anniversary of the Ballon d'Or in 2016, France Football published a reevaluation of the awards presented before 1995, when only European players were eligible to win the award. 12 out of the 39 Ballons d'Or presented during this time period would have been awarded to South American players; in addition to Pelé and Diego Maradona, Garrincha, Mario Kempes, and Romário were retrospectively recognized as worthy winners. The original recipients, however, remain unchanged.[22] Maradona and Pelé received honorary Ballons d'Or for their services to football in 1996 and 2013, respectively.[23][24]

Le nouveau palmarès (the new winners)
Year Original New
1958  Raymond Kopa (FRA)  Pelé (BRA)
1959  Alfredo Di Stéfano (ESP)  Pelé (BRA)
1960  Luis Suárez (ESP)  Pelé (BRA)
1961  Omar Sívori (ITA)  Pelé (BRA)
1962  Josef Masopust (TCH)  Garrincha (BRA)
1963  Lev Yashin (URS)  Pelé (BRA)
1964  Denis Law (SCO)  Pelé (BRA)
1970  Gerd Müller (FRG)  Pelé (BRA)
1978  Kevin Keegan (ENG)  Mario Kempes (ARG)
1986  Igor Belanov (URS)  Diego Maradona (ARG)
1990  Lothar Matthäus (GER)  Diego Maradona (ARG)
1994  Hristo Stoichkov (BUL)  Romário (BRA)

See also

Notes

  1. ↑ Born in Argentina, Di Stéfano acquired Spanish citizenship in 1956 and went on to play for the Spanish national football team.[9]
  2. ↑ Born in Argentina, Sívori acquired Italian citizenship in 1961 and went on to play for the Italian national football team.[10]
  3. ↑ Cruyff was signed by Barcelona from Ajax midway through 1973.
  4. ↑ Keegan was signed by Hamburg from Liverpool midway through 1977.
  5. ↑ Lineker was signed by Barcelona from Everton midway through 1986.
  6. ↑ Gullit was signed by Milan from PSV Eindhoven midway through 1987.[11]
  7. ↑ Futre was signed by Atlético Madrid from Porto midway through 1987.
  8. ↑ Rijkaard was signed by Milan from Real Zaragoza midway through 1988.
  9. ↑ Weah was signed by Milan from Paris Saint-Germain midway through 1995.[12]
  10. ↑ Ronaldo was signed by Barcelona from PSV Eindhoven midway through 1996.
  11. ↑ Ronaldo was signed by Internazionale from Barcelona midway through 1997.[13]
  12. ↑ Figo was signed by Real Madrid from Barcelona midway through 2000.[14]
  13. ↑ Ronaldo was signed by Real Madrid from Internazionale midway through 2002.[15]
  14. ↑ Deco was signed by Barcelona from Porto midway through 2004.
  15. ↑ Cannavaro was signed by Real Madrid from Juventus midway through 2006.[16]
  16. ↑ Cristiano Ronaldo was signed by Real Madrid from Manchester United midway through 2009.[17]
  17. ↑ Cristiano Ronaldo additionally won two FIFA Ballons d'Or (2013, 2014) and thrice finished in second place (2011, 2012, 2015).[18][19]
  18. ↑ Messi additionally won four FIFA Ballon d'Or (2010, 2011, 2012, 2015) and twice finished in second place (2013, 2014).[18][19]

References

  1. ↑ "Matthews wins first Golden Ball". BBC Sport (British Broadcasting Corporation). 1 December 2008. Retrieved 4 December 2008.
  2. 1 2 3 "The 1990s Ballon d'Or winners". BBC Sport (British Broadcasting Corporation). 1 December 2008. Retrieved 4 December 2008.
  3. ↑ "Ronaldo joins legendary list". BBC Sport (British Broadcasting Corporation). 1 December 2008. Retrieved 4 December 2008.
  4. ↑ "Messi obtiene el Balón de oro 2009". El Economista (in Spanish). 1 December 2009. Retrieved 1 December 2009.
  5. ↑ "Rankings by Wins". Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation. 9 October 2008. Retrieved 4 December 2008.
  6. ↑ "Kaka wins 2007 award". BBC Sport (British Broadcasting Corporation). 1 December 2008. Retrieved 4 December 2008.
  7. ↑ "The FIFA Ballon d'Or is born". FIFA.com. Fédération Internationale de Football Association. 5 July 2010. Retrieved 4 December 2012.
  8. ↑ "How the award came about". UEFA.com. Union of European Football Associations. 9 August 2011. Retrieved 6 November 2011.
  9. ↑ Bellwood, Tom (4 December 2009). "The best footballers to have never played in the World Cup". Daily Mail. Retrieved 16 June 2011.
  10. ↑ "Juve legend Sívori dies". UEFA.com. Union of European Football Associations. 18 February 2005. Retrieved 16 February 2011.
  11. ↑ "Sexy football to sexy golf, Gullit shows his class". The Scotsman (Johnston Press Digital Publishing). 4 October 2008. Retrieved 6 December 2008.
  12. ↑ Harris, Nick (7 December 2004). "George Weah: favourite to win biggest battle – leading his country off the field". The Independent (Associated Press). Retrieved 6 December 2008.
  13. ↑ "Fast facts on Ronaldo". Sports Illustrated. Reuters. 31 August 2002. Retrieved 6 December 2008.
  14. ↑ Nash, Elizabeth (25 July 2000). "Figo defects to Real Madrid for record £37.2m". The Independent (Associated Press). Retrieved 6 December 2008.
  15. ↑ "Real ropes Ronaldo". Sports Illustrated. Associated Press. 31 August 2002. Retrieved 6 December 2008.
  16. ↑ "Real sign Cannavaro and Emerson". BBC Sport (British Broadcasting Corporation). 19 July 2006. Retrieved 6 December 2008.
  17. ↑ "Man Utd accept £80m Ronaldo bid". BBC Sport (British Broadcasting Corporation). 11 June 2009. Retrieved 11 June 2009.
  18. 1 2 "La liste complête des lauréats du Ballon d'or, de 1956 à nos jours". France Football. Retrieved 14 January 2016.
  19. 1 2 "FIFA Awards – World Player of the Year". Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation. 12 February 2015. Retrieved 14 January 2016.
  20. ↑ "On this day, Di Stéfano won the Super Ballon d'Or". RealMadrid.com. 24 December 2015. Retrieved 13 January 2016.
  21. ↑ Stokkermans, Karel (23 December 2015). "France Football's Football Player of the Century". Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation. Retrieved 13 January 2016.
  22. ↑ Marchand, Thierry (December 2015). "On a refait le palmarès". France Football. Retrieved 13 January 2016.
  23. ↑ "Maradona receives honorary award". BBC Sport. 1 December 2008. Retrieved 13 January 2016.
  24. ↑ "Pele receives FIFA Ballon d'Or Prix d'Honneur". FIFA.com. 13 January 2014. Retrieved 14 January 2016.

External links

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