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The Ballon d'Or is widely considered to be the most significant as well as the most prestigious award a footballer can win based on his performances in a calendar year.
In the last 12 years, only three players have laid their hands on the coveted award, with Luka Modric managing to break Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo's duopoly in 2018 after leading Croatia to an impressive runner-up finish at the 2018 FIFA World Cup.
Since its inception in 1956, the Ballon d'Or award was never won by a single player more than three times before Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo arrived on the scene. As things stand now, the Argentine demi-god has won it a record six times, while the Portuguese gladiator is not too far behind with five.
Several legendary players have missed out on the Ballon d'Or award
With the Ballon d'Or award bestowed to only one player every year, the prestigious award has been conspicuous by its absence in the glittering resumes of many world-class players.
On that note, here is a look at five such players who never won the Ballon d'Or award:
#5 Ferenc Puskas
One of the earliest superstars of the game, Ferenc Puskas is still regarded as one of the finest footballers to have ever graced the sport. An unbelievably prolific goal-scorer, the Hungarian dazzled the world with his goalscoring prowess as he amassed on a staggering number of goals during his career.
He started out for Budapest Honved in Hungary before moving to Real Madrid in Spain, unleashing his brilliance in both leagues. Puskas won three European championships with Madrid, ten national championships (five of them with Madrid) and also led Hungary to the Olympic gold medal in the 1952 games.
Unfortunately, Puskas was already 29 when the Ballon d'Or was first awarded. Despite Puskas scoring heavily in the next few years, he only made the Ballon d'Or top 3 once - in 1960 - where he finished second.
Considering his stellar exploits, Ferenc Puskas remains one of the greatest ever players never to have won the Ballon d'Or award.
#4 Paolo Maldini
Another all-time great, Paolo Maldini, is still considered to be one of the greatest ever defenders and one of the best to have played the game. A true one-club man, Maldini spent 25 seasons at Milan, winning a staggering tally of 25 trophies, including five European honours and seven Serie A titles.
The Italian defender had the best chance of winning the Ballon d'Or award in 1994 when Milan won the UEFA Champions League, Serie A, Supercoppa Italiana and the UEFA Super Cup. Maldini made it to the top three but finished behind Hristo Stoichkov and Roberto Baggio.
He finished third once again in 2003, this time behind Pavel Nedved and Thierry Henry, after helping Milan win the UEFA Champions League, the UEFA Super Cup and the Coppa Italia that year.
An undeniably legendary player, Maldini has an enduring legacy despite the absence of a Ballon d'Or award among his glittering list of accolades.
#3 Thierry Henry
It's almost criminal that Thierry Henry never won the Ballon d'Or award. A striker for the ages, Henry still remains Arsenal's all-time leading goalscorer. The Frenchman moved to Arsenal in 1999 and went on to become one of the best forwards the Premier League has ever seen.
Henry scored an astonishing total of 226 goals in 370 matches across competitions for Arsenal, helping the Gunners win six trophies, including two Premier League titles. One of them was the 2003-04 Premier League title, which Arsenal won after going undefeated throughout the season.
Although he went on to play for Barcelona, Henry's best years were arguably at Arsenal. He came close to winning the Ballon d'Or twice during his stint at Arsenal. In 2003, he finished behind Pavel Nedved and in 2006, he finished behind Fabio Cannavaro and Gianluigi Buffon.
Henry is also the all-time top goalscorer for France (51 goals), with whom he won the FIFA World Cup in 1998, the UEFA European Championship in 2000 and the FIFA Confederations Cup in 2003.
There is little doubt that Henry will forever be hailed as one of the best goal-scorers the Premier League has ever seen. However, a Ballon d'Or award would have certainly augmented that reputation further.
#2 Andres Iniesta
When one thinks of historic trebles, Barcelona and Andres Iniesta come to mind. A product of the club's famed youth academy, La Masia, Iniesta rose through the ranks to become one of the best players to have graced the game.
Widely considered one of the best midfielders ever, Iniesta spent 16 long seasons at Barcelona, winning a jaw-dropping 30 major trophies, including nine LaLiga titles and four UEFA Champions League trophies. He was a significant part of the teams that won the trebles in 2009 and 2015.
Iniesta is also one of the most decorated Spanish players of all time, winning the 2010 FIFA World Cup and two UEFA European Championships (2008 and 2012) with Spain.
The Ballon d'Or award was essentially the only accolade Iniesta didn't win, despite coming close on two occasions.
In 2010, he finished behind his Barcelona teammate, Lionel Messi. In 2012, he finished behind Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo. In short, the only reason Iniesta never won the Ballon d'Or award because he happened to play at the same time as Messi and Ronaldo.
#1 Xavi
Yet another stellar graduate of Barcelona's La Masia academy, Xavi too, is one of the greatest players to have played for the club. He is also one of the best midfielders of all time. Until recently, he held the record for most appearances (767) for Barcelona.
In his 17 seasons with the Blaugrana, Xavi won 25 major trophies, including eight La Liga titles and four UEFA Champions League trophies. Alongside Andres Iniesta, Xavi was another significant part of the Barcelona teams that won two historic trebles.
Xavi also made 133 appearances for Spain, winning the 2010 FIFA World Cup and two UEFA European Championships (2008 and 2012). Despite being at the peak of his powers and tasting success for club and country several times, Xavi failed to win the Ballon d'Or award.
Xavi thrice came third in the Ballon d'Or rankings, doing so in 2009, 2010 and 2011.
Xavi and Iniesta would readily agree that the greatest downside of playing in the Messi and Ronaldo era is that the Ballon d'Or award may remain elusive.
