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The Ballon d'Or, also known as the "Golden Ball" is an annual football award awarded by France Football.
Originally an award exclusively for European players, in 1995 the Ballon d'Or was expanded to include all players from any origin who are active at European clubs. In 2007, the Ballon d'Or became a global award, eligible for all professional footballers plying their trade anywhere around the world.
However, no player from a non-European club has managed to win the award.
A total of 44 different players from 19 different nations (which includes 3 non-European nations in Brazil, Argentina, and Liberia) have won the coveted award since its inaugural edition in 1956. 5 different players from Germany have won the Ballon d'Or which is the most number of players from any country to have won the award.
George Weah (1995) is the first of 7 non-European players to have won the Ballon d'Or while Lev Yashin (1963) is the only goalkeeper to win the award.
Eight players (Bobby Charlton, Franz Beckenbauer, Gerd Müller, Paolo Rossi, Zinedine Zidane, Rivaldo, Ronaldinho and Kaká) have won the FIFA World Cup, the European Cup/UEFA Champions League and the Ballon d'Or during their careers, with Kaká being the most recent player do so in 2007.
Players from Germany, Netherlands, and Portugal have won the most Ballon d'Or awards (7 apiece) while players from Real Madrid and Barcelona have won the award on most occasions (11 apiece). Let us have a look at the players to have won the most Ballon d'Or awards.
Johan Cruyff (3-time winner)
Johan Cruyff became the first Dutchman to win the Ballon d'Or when he did so in 1971 after a stellar season with Ajax in 1970-71 which saw the Eredivise club win the European Cup.
After winning a third-straight European Cup and a win in the Eredivisie, Cruyff moved from Ajax to Barcelona in the summer of 1973 and won his second Ballon d'Or title that year to become the first player to win multiple Ballon d'Or titles.
The legendary Dutchman led his new club to a thumping 5-0 win at the home of their arch-rivals Real Madrid and a first Liga title in 14 years, to win the 1974 Ballon d'Or.
In the process, Cruyff became the first player to win the prestigious award in back-to-back years and become the first three-time winner of the Ballon d'Or.
Also check out: Champions League table La liga table 2019-20 EPL table
Michel Platini (3-time winner)
Michel Platini arrived at Juventus in the summer of 1982. Following a difficult initiation to life in the Italian top-flight, Platini's 28 goals in all competitions led the Bianconeri to the European Cup final (lost to Hamburg) and the Coppa Italia title as the Frenchman won his first Ballon d'Or title that year.
The following season, Platini's 25 goals in all competitions led Juventus to the Serie A title and the Cup Winners Cup. The Frenchman's record 9 goals at Euro' 84 helped his national team win the European Championships as Platini became the first player since Cruyff to win the Ballon d'Or in successive years.
Platini won the 1984 European Super Cup, 1985 European Cup, and the 1985 European Cup as he finished the season as the Serie A top-scorer for the third-straight season. In the process, the Frenchman became the first player to win 3 consecutive Ballon d'Or titles and emulated Cruyff as the only player to win the prestigious award on 3 occasions.
Marco van Basten (3-time winner)
Marco van Basten arrived at AC Milan from Ajax in the summer of 1987. Despite an ankle injury limiting the Dutchman to just 11 appearances in all competitions (7 in the Serie A), Milan won their first Scudetto in 8 years.
Van Basten scored 5 goals at the 1988 Euros in West Germany as the Netherlands won their first (and only) major international tournament. In the process, the Dutchman won his first Ballon d'Or title.
Bolstered by the arrival of fellow Dutchmen Ruud Gullit and Frank Rijkaard in 1988-89, Van Basten scored 33 goals in all competitions, including 19 goals in the Serie A, but Milan failed to secure back-to-back league titles, finishing third, behind Juventus and Napoli. Van Basten's exploits during the season saw him win a second-consecutive Ballon d'Or in 1989.
In 1991-92, van Basten's 29 goals in all competitions, which included 25 goals in Serie A led an unbeaten Milan to the Scudetto title. Van Basten started the 1992-93 season on a tear, scoring 7 goals in wins over Pescara (5-4), Fiorentina (7-3), and Lazio (5-3).
The Dutchman then became the first (and till date the only player) to score 4 goals in his Champions League debut when he netted all 4 in Milan's 4-0 win over Swedish side Gothenburg as he won his third Ballon d'Or award in 92.
Lionel Messi (5-time winner)
Lionel Messi became the winner of the Ballon d'Or in 2009 following a fine 2008-09 season where he scored 38 goals in 51 games in all competitions as Barcelona won the first treble by a Spanish club (Liga, Copa del Rey, and Champions League). Later in the year, the Catalan club won the Supercopa Espana, European Super Cup, and the FIFA Club World Cup, as a 22-year-old Messi became one of the youngest winners of the Ballon d'Or.
In 2009-10, Messi continued from where he had left off, scoring a club-record 47 goals in all competitions as Barcelona won consecutive Liga titles. In the process, Messi became the first player since Marco van Basten (1988-89) to win back-to-back Ballon d'Or awards.
The following season saw Messi growing in stature as the Argentinian scored a club-record 53 goals in all competitions as Barcelona won the Super Coppa Espana, a third-straight Liga title and a second Champions League title in 3 years. It saw Messi emulate Frenchman Michel Platini in becoming the only player to win 3 Ballon d'Ors on the trot, and become the fourth player to win the prestigious award 3 times (also Johan Kruyff, Platini, and Marco Van Basten).
Not content with his exploits from the previous season, 2011-12 saw Messi became the first player to score 50 Liga goals in a season en route to amassing an astonishing 73 goals in all competitions, as Barcelona won the European Super Cup, Spanish Super Cup, and the FIFA Club World Cup but finished second in the Liga and lost in the Champions League semi-finals.
In the process, Messi created Ballon d'Or history by becoming the first player to win the award 4 times and the first to do so in 4 consecutive years.
Messi's 58 goals in all competitions in 2014-15 saw Barcelona win a historic second treble (Liga, Copa Del Rey, and Champions League).
Later in the year, Barcelona won the UEFA Super Cup and FIFA Club World Cup, as Messi became the first player to win 5 Ballon d'Or titles.
Cristiano Ronaldo (5-time winner)
In his fifth season at English club Manchester United in 2007-08, Cristiano Ronaldo scored a career-best 42 goals in all competitions, including a goal in the Champions League final in Moscow against fellow-Premier League club Chelsea, as the Old Trafford club won their 17th top-flight title and third Champions League title.
During that season, Ronaldo scored his only hat-trick for Manchester United as the then 23-year-old won the Premier League Golden Boot and became the first winger to win the European Golden Shoe award.
Ronaldo's exploits that season saw him become the first Portuguese player since Eusebio and Luis Figo to win the Ballon d'Or award.
Staying on at United for another season before moving to Real Madrid in the summer of 2008-09, Ronaldo had to wait five more years before he could lay his hands on the prestigious Ballon d'Or.
In 2012-13, Ronaldo scored 55 goals in all competitions and won his third title in Spain as Real Madrid won the Supercopa Espana, finished second in the Liga and lost in the semifinals of the Champions League. In the first half of 2013-14, Ronaldo scored 32 goals for club and country by November en route to scoring 69 goals in the calendar year as the Portuguese won his second Ballon d'Or award and his first since 2008.
The following season in 2013-14, saw Real Madrid win the La Decima in the Champions League as Ronaldo's 17 goals marked the highest single-season goal-tally by a player in the competition. Ronaldo's goal in the final against Atletico made him the only player to score for two different Champions League winning teams.
In the Copa del Rey semis against Atletico, Ronaldo's first goal meant that he had scored a goal in every minute of a 90-minute football game as he ended the season with 51 goals in all competitions.
Ronaldo started the 2014-15 season on a tear, scoring a record-15 goals in the first 8 games, and scored a record 23rd Liga hat-trick as the Portuguese won his third Ballon d'Or and his second in as many years.
Ronaldo celebrated the start of his 7th season at Real Madrid in 2015-16 by becoming the club's all-time top-scorer.
A hat-trick in a group-match against Shakhtar Donetsk made Ronaldo the most prolific scorer in the Champions League as the Portugal captain's 11 group-stage goals created a new record in the competition. Ronaldo scored the winning penalty in the Champions League final against Atletico Madrid as Real celebrated their second European title in three years.
Ronaldo led Portugal to the 2016 Euro title, becoming the first player to score in 4 consecutive editions of the tournament. Later in the year, Real won the UEFA Super Cup and the FIFA Club World Cup where Ronaldo scored a hat-trick against Kashima Antlers as the Portugal captain won his 4th Ballon d'Or title, becoming the only player after Lionel Messi to do so.
The first half of 2017 saw Real Madrid win their 33rd (and most recent) Liga title and become the first club in the Champions League era to win back-to-back titles as Ronaldo closed the 2016-17 season with a rich haul of 51 goals in all competition, marking the sixth-straight season he scored at least 50 goals in club football.
Ronaldo started the 2017-18 season by scoring in a 3-1 win over Barcelona in the Supercopa Espana and became the first player in Champions League history to score in all 6 group-stage games. A day later, Ronaldo won his 5th Ballon d'Or award, drawing him level with Lionel Messi as the only players to do so.
Ronaldo would end the season with a hat-trick of Champions League titles before leaving Real Madrid after 9 fruitful seasons with the club.
