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The Golden Ball is awarded to the best performing player at the FIFA World Cup finals. The winner is chosen via voting by media representatives from a shortlist prepared by the FIFA technical committee. The Golden Ball award was introduced in the 1982 edition of the FIFA World Cup.
So far, there have been 10 Golden Ball winners and no player has won the prestigious award twice in their career. In addition to the Golden Ball, there is also the Silver Ball and the Bronze Ball, which are awarded to the second and third-best players respectively.
Without further ado, let's take a look at every Golden Ball winner in the history of the FIFA World Cup.
#10 Paolo Rossi (Italy) - 1982 FIFA World Cup
Paolo Rossi is the only European player to have won the World Cup, the Golden Boot and the Golden Ball in the same tournament. He did so in 1982 with the Italian national team and also secured the Ballon d'Or that year. Rossi is still Italy's joint-top scorer at World Cups. alongside Roberto Baggio, with nine goals.
He was involved in the infamous 1980 betting scandal popularly known as 'Totonero', which led to him being banned from football for three years. Fortunately for him, the ban was reduced to two years and this enabled him to play at the 1982 FIFA World Cup.
He scored six goals and was Italy's hero as they won the World Cup.
#9 Diego Maradona (Argentina) - 1986 FIFA World Cup
Diego Maradona is arguably the most deserving winner of the World Cup Golden Ball. His individual brilliance shone through as Argentina won the 1986 World Cup. Maradona netted five times in the tournament and also scored what is widely considered to be the greatest goal of all time against England in the quarter-finals.
Maradona then bagged another brace against Belgium in the semi-finals before assisting La Albiceleste's winning goal in the final against West Germany.
#8 Salvatore Schillaci (Italy) - 1990 FIFA World Cup
Salvatore Schillaci, popularly known as Toto Schillaci, took everyone by surprise in the 1990 FIFA World Cup. He inspired Italy to a third-placed finish at the tournament, bagging six goals along the way and picking up the Golden Boot and the Golden Ball.
The fact that he pipped the likes of Diego Maradona and Lothar Matthaus to the awards shows just how impressive his performances were. Schillaci finished second in the race for the 1990 Ballon d'Or, right behind Matthaus.
#7 Romario (Brazil) - 1994 FIFA World Cup
Romario is widely considered to be one of the greatest strikers of all time. By the time the 1994 edition of the World Cup arrived, the Brazilian marksman was operating at the peak of his powers. He scored in every group stage game for Brazil before adding two more in three knockout games at the tournament.
He was Brazil's main man in attack and led them to World Cup glory by virtue of his inspired form and incredible technical ability.
#6 Ronaldo Nazario (Brazil) - 1998 FIFA World Cup
The popular opinion is that if Ronaldo had not suffered major health problems on the eve of the 1998 FIFA World Cup, France wouldn't have beaten Brazil. 'O Fenomeno' was not only an exceptional leader on the pitch but was also world-class at the age of 21.
He was already a Ballon d'Or winner and his performances at the 1998 World Cup established him as a modern day footballing phenomenon. Four years later, Ronaldo would spearhead Brazil's attack and lead them to World Cup triumph, whilst also picking up the Golden Boot as the tournament's top goalscorer.
#5 Oliver Kahn (Germany) - 2002 FIFA World Cup
Until Ronaldo put two past him in the final of the 2002 FIFA World Cup, Oliver Kahn looked nearly infallible between the sticks for Germany. He was a monstrous presence with the gloves for Germany and his inspired form, conceding one goal in six games up until the final, was crucial to their dominance.
He kept five clean sheets and picked up a well-deserved Golden Ball.
#4 Zinedine Zidane (France) - 2006 FIFA World Cup
Zinedine Zidane ended his footballing career after the 2006 FIFA World Cup. Zidane lit up the tournament with his silky smooth skills and innovative playmaking, but his journey suffered an anticlimactic end in the final. Zizou was sent off in the final for headbutting Marco Materazzi and France lost the game to Italy in the shootout.
He was not at his imperious best in the tournament but turned in a couple of mesmerizing performances against Spain and Brazil in the knockout stages. He also scored from the spot as Les Bleus got the better of Portugal in the semis before doing the same in the final against Italy before he was sent off.
#3 Diego Forlan (Uruguay) - 2010 FIFA World Cup
Not only was Diego Forlan the recipient of the Golden Ball at the 2010 FIFA World Cup, but he could have also been the Golden Boot winner at the tournament. Forlan's five goals propelled Uruguay to an eventual fourth-place finish.
He was the joint-top scorer at the tournament along with Thomas Muller, who pipped him to the award after registering more assists. Forlan scored some spectacular goals in the tournament and terrorized goalkeepers with his accurate strikers from range.
#2 Lionel Messi (Argentina) - 2014 FIFA World Cup
The 2014 FIFA World Cup saw Lionel Messi come excruciatingly close to completing football. He was heavily influential for the Argentinian side as he scored four goals in three group stage matches. Messi also set up Argentina's winner against Switzerland in the Round of 16.
However, his contributions dwindled towards the business end of the tournament as he struggled to play to the best of his abilities against resolute defenses. But Messi still won the Golden Ball for his performances.
#1 Luka Modric (Croatia) - 2018 FIFA World Cup
Croatia were not expected to make it to the 2018 FIFA World Cup final. Led by the exceptionally talented midfield duo of Luka Modric and Ivan Rakitic, among several other stars, Croatia's second 'Golden Generation' enjoyed a terrific run.
He scored two very important goals and provided one assist in the tournament. More importantly, it was Modric's ability to orchestrate play and break down teams with his incredible passing range that made Croatia a formidable side.
