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Although Cristiano Ronaldo and his fans will be celebrating his Ballon d’Or triumph in Zurich last night, the Portuguese star may have just cursed Portugal after the win.
Why? Because the trend from the previous years suggest that the player who wins the Ballon d’Or will fail at the next World Cup.
Still not convinced? Well, in the past, players like Johan Cruyff, Roberto Baggio, the original Brazilian Ronaldo, Ronaldinho and even runner-up Lionel Messi have won the Ballon d’Or and failed to win the coveted World Cup trophy months later.
The Ballon d’Or Curse
Surprisingly, players who have finished runners-up have also not won the FIFA World Cup.
But three players who came third in the votes have won the World Cup – Gerd Muller (West Germany – 1974), Zinedine Zidane (France – 1998) and Xavi (Spain – 2010). And who came third this time? France’s Franck Ribery. Les Bleus for the 2014 World Cup, anyone?
