We're only halfway through 2019 but football's best players have already begun making their picks for this year's Ballon d'Or award.Luka Modric controversially took home the Golden Ball last year in recognition of his exploits for Real Madrid in the Champions League and Croatia in the FIFA World Cup.The battle for football's most prestigious individual award is looking more like a two-horse race at the moment with Messi and Virgil van Dijk having emerged as the main contenders to lift the award at the end of the year.While Messi's goal-scoring exploits have helped Barcelona to a consecutive La Liga title, van Dijk played a key role in Liverpool's outstanding Premier League campaign and their Champions League victory earlier this month.Also see : Womens World Cup Bracket, Gold Cup Standings, Copa America StandingsHere, we take a look at six of the world's best players who have picked their favorite to win the 2019 Ballon d'Or:#6 Kylian Mbappe (Pick: Lionel Messi)France v Croatia - 2018 FIFA World Cup Russia FinalParis Saint-Germain superstar Kylian Mbappe has a clear favorite in mind to win the 2019 Ballon d'Or. The inaugural Kopa trophy winner has picked Lionel Messi as the man to take home football's most coveted prize at the end of the year despite Barcelona's grand collapse in the Champions League last month.Messi has enjoyed an eye-catching season, scoring 36 league goals which earned him the Pichichi trophy as well as the European Golden Shoe award. Mbappe was his closest competitor for the latter but the Frenchman fell short after tallying 33 goals for PSG in Ligue 1.Despite enduring a heart-breaking loss to Liverpool in the Champions League semi-finals, the 31-year-old finished his campaign as the competition's top-scorer. His overall tally in all competitions comes to a staggering 51 goals.Speaking of his Ballon d'Or pick at the UNFP awards ceremony in France, Mbappe said, "Messi, despite the elimination (Barcelona were beaten by Liverpool in Champions League semi-final), it does not change anything.""He is the number one. He has shown he was the best player this year. The year will take us up to December but I’m not worried about him, he is going to play until December."