5 interesting facts about the Ballon d'Or award

The Ballon d’Or is one of the most popular and also one of the most acclaimed honors in the world of football. The award is generally reserved for the crème de la crème, the best of the best on the football pitch in the preceding year.

While previously the award was solely based upon the votes of reputed journalists associated with the game, since 2007, the responsibilities have been extended to national team coaches and captains too.

With every passing year the award has grown in stature, to the extent that it has a larger-than-life image at present.

The biggest day of the year is almost upon us. With the winner of the 2019 Ballon d’Or set to be announced very soon, we delve into the awards in detail and bring you five interesting facts about it.

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#5 Only 10 players have won the award more than once

Alfredo Di Stefano

As if winning the award for the first time wasn’t hard enough, a handful of players have managed to win it more than once. However, this is an accomplishment that has been achieved by just 10 men to date, which puts them in a rare group.

The feat was first managed by the legendary Alfredo Di Stefano of Real Madrid. The Spaniard won the Ballon d’Or in 1957, finishing with 72 points. In 1959, Di Stefano was back at the top once again, this time with 80 points. In doing so, he became the first-ever footballer to win the award twice.

Just over a decade later, Johan Cruyff of Barcelona repeated the feat when he won the Ballon d’Or in 1971 and then again in 1973. The Dutchman went on to win his third Ballon d’Or in the following year.

At around the same time Franz Beckenbauer picked up two Ballon d’Or awards himself, in 1972 and 1976. At that point, there were still only a handful of players who had managed to be consistent enough to win the Ballon d’Or more than once.

Kevin Keegan, while playing for Hamburg, won his first Ballon d’Or award in 1978. In the following year he repeated the feat, etching his name in the history books as the only English footballer to win the award twice.

In 1980, Karl-Heinz Rummenigge took over the mantle from the Englishman, gathering 122 points in the process. The German won his second Ballon d’Or the following year, becoming only the fifth player to win the coveted prize more than once.

Michel Platini then made the award his own, winning the Ballon d’Or three years in succession from 1983.

Dutchman Marco van Basten’s time to rule the award arrived next, as he picked up three Ballon d’Or awards in 1989, 1990 and 1992. Brazilian sensation Ronaldo also joined the elite club by winning the Ballon d’Or twice, in 1997 and 2002.

Since then, two unbelievable footballers have joined the group – Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo, both with five Ballon d’Or to their name. The Argentinean won the award in 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012 and 2015, while the Portuguese won his five in 2008, 2013, 2014, 2016 and 2017.

#4 Only 2 clubs have taken all top 3 spots in the same year

Marco Van Basten

While winning the Ballon d’Or is quite an achievement, finishing in the top 3 is no mean feat either. And it is only on the rarest of rare occasions that all the top 3 positions are secured by players from a single club.

In fact, that has happened only thrice in the history of the award.

In 1988, when Marco van Basten won his first Ballon d’Or while playing for AC Milan, there was a reason to rejoice for the Rossoneri. That was because alongside Van Basten, Milan players Ruud Gullit and Frank Rijkaard also made it to the top 3. It was the first time that all three players in the top three belonged to the same club.

The following year, Milan once again made the news when three players from the club finished in the top 3. Van Basten finished top once again, while Franco Baresi and Frank Rijkaard finished second and third respectively.

Almost two decades later in 2010, history repeated itself as Lionel Messi lifted his second Ballon d’Or, while Andres Iniesta finished second, with Xavi following in at third. All three played for Barcelona at that time.

#3 Manchester United have the most Ballon d’Or winners from England

Denis Law

Manchester United’s dominance in the Premier League can be traced back to the inception of the league. However, even before Sir Alex Ferguson had taken United beyond the reach of their league rivals, the Red Devils had been England’s true representative in the Ballon d’Or awards.

A Manchester United player first won the Ballon d’Or in 1964, when Dennis Law finished with 61 points. Two years later in 1966, United legend Bobby Charlton became only the second Englishman to win the award, securing 81 points.

In 1968, George Best got his hands on the Ballon d’Or, ensuring that Manchester United’s holy trinity were all champions of the world.

A United player stayed among the fringes of the award for the next few decades, before Cristiano Ronaldo won his first Ballon d’Or in 2008 while playing for Manchester United. As of now, four United players have won the award, the highest from an English club.

Stanley Matthews managed to become the first Ballon d’Or winner during his time at Blackpool in 1956. Michael Owen also won the coveted award in 2001 while playing for Liverpool.

#2 German dominance

Franz Beckenbauer

The Ballon d’Or has been won by individuals from various countries, but a few nations have dominated the awards - like Germany. Five players from Germany have won the award so far, the highest from a single nation, a feat that is shared with Italy. Germany also has seven Ballon d’Or wins from all its players, tied with Netherlands and Portugal as the most by a single nation to date.

In 1972, Gerd Muller won the Ballon d’Or and created history by becoming the first-ever German player to win the award. Two years later, when Franz Beckenbauer lifted the top prize, a different record was set: for the first time ever, all of the top 3 players belonged to a single country – Germany.

Along with Der Kaiser, his club colleague Muller as well as Borussia Monchengladbach’s Gunter Netzer made up an all-German top 3.

Beckenbauer won his second Ballon d’Or four years later before Karl-Heinz Rummenigge claimed back-to-back awards in 1980 and 1981. Lothar Matthaus, following his stellar display for club and country, won the Ballon d’Or in 1990, before Borussia Dortmund’s Matthias Sammer lifted the top prize in 1996. That was the last time a player from Germany won the prestigious award.

#1 The awards were previously meant only for players of European origin

Diego Maradona

When the Ballon d’Or was first introduced in 1956, it was initially intended for players of European origin. As a result, many of the stellar names in football, including Diego Maradona and Pele, never won the prestigious prize during their professional career.

This was first changed in 1995, when players of any origin playing in Europe were considered eligible for the award. In 2007, the Ballon d’Or truly achieved global status when all professional footballers around the world were included in the selection criteria.

In 2016, as a part of the celebration of 60 years of the award, France Football carried out a re-evaluation of the award for the era where non-European players were not eligible. All 39 awards from 1956 to 1994 were considered, and 12 of those were awarded to South American footballers.

Pele, Diego Maradona, Mario Kempes, Garrincha and Romario shared the award among them. Pele won seven, while Maradona was awarded two. However, the original European winners were unchanged.

The two legendary footballers also won honorary Ballon d'Or awards for their contributions to the beautiful game. The Brazilian won the award in 2013, while the Argentinean was awarded the coveted prize in 1996.