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#3 Karim Benzema - 10 nominations
Karim Benzema is probably not the first name that comes to mind when talking about the Ballon d'Or but his performances have helped him be in contention for the award, at least in the early stages, with 10 appearances in the 30-man shortlist. Only Messi and Ronaldo have more nominations than the Frenchman.
Benzema has enjoyed a trophy-laden career with four league titles with Lyon and three La Liga titles for Real Madrid. He was also a key member of Real Madrid's squad that won three consecutive Champions League titles.
Since the departure of Cristiano Ronaldo from the Spanish club, he has been the main attacking force and his performances have been rewarded with a place in the 30-man shortlist for the Ballon d'Or yet again this year.
#2 Cristiano Ronaldo - 13 nominations
Cristiano Ronaldo is beyond doubt one of the greatest players to have graced football. He has consistently kept his numbers up and proven himself across three different leagues.
He won the EURO in 2016 with Portugal and with that added the one thing that was missing from his glistening career. He last won the Ballon d'Or in 2017, mostly because of his role in helping Real Madrid secure their 12th Champions League trophy.
He has five Ballon d'Ors to his name and his arch-rival Messi having taken the lead with a 2019 win over him, he will be hoping to bag the prize this time around to get back on level terms.
#1 Lionel Messi - 13 nominations
Messi is the holder of the award and many think he might be the favourite for the prestigious award again.
The left-footed forward left his childhood club Barcelona in the summer and moved to Paris Saint-Germain, where he is facing some trouble finding his feet and has scored just one goal so far.
It was the 15th nomination for the player, including the 2007 edition, where he finished third in the standings behind Ronaldo and winner Kaka. Before the 2008 edition, 50 players were selected for the final vote for the Ballon d'Or, hence we did not include the first two instances when Messi made it into the final shortlist.
Can the 34-year-old lift the Balon d'Or, especially given he won his first-ever international trophy with Argentina this year? Only time will tell.
