Okocha, Finidi, Kanu Among Nigerian Footballers Who Earned Ballon d’Or Nomination

• Nigerian players have held their own when it comes to getting nominated for the Ballon d'Or award
• Although he never was CAF Player of the Year, Jay-Jay Okocha was nominated for the coveted award
• Kanu Nwankwo earned the highest-ever position for a Nigerian player in the award's history

A number of Nigerian footballers were nominated for the prestigious Ballon d’Or in the past including former Ajax of Amsterdam stars, Kanu Nwankwo and Finidi George.

Sensational playmaker, Jay-Jay Okocha was also named for the prize in the past and just last year, Asisat Oshoala was named for the award in the women’s category.

The Barcelona Femeni striker finished the season as the joint top scorer in the Spanish Primera division with 19 goals, helping the Catalan club retain their league title.

Sports Brief has taken a look at the Nigerian players who were nominated for the coveted award.

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Football

Finidi George - 1995

Finidi George showed class during his time with the Dutch club, Ajax Amsterdam and was nominated for the prestigious prize.

He played a crucial role in helping his side win the coveted UEFA Champions League in 1995 which helped him get on the nomination sheet. However, Liberia’s George Weah won the prize that year.

Austin Jay-Jay Okocha - 1995

Also in 1995, magical midfielder, Jay-Jay Okocha was nominated for the prestigious prize, but he did not receive any votes.

That was during the peak of the Nigerian's career while he played for Eintracht Frankfurt before earning a mega-money transfer to Turkish outfit, Fenerbahce.

Daniel Amokachi - 1995

‘The Bull’ was also nominated for the award in 1995.

That year, Amokachi was instrumental to Everton’s FA Cup glory as his brace knocked out Tottenham Hotspur in the semi-final.

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Football

Nwankwo Kanu - 1996, 1999

Kanu was part of the Nigerian 'Dream Team' squad that won gold at the football event of the Olympic Games in Atlanta.

A year earlier, he won the Champions League with Ajax. With 11 votes, Kanu finished in 14th position - the highest-ever position for a Nigerian player in Ballon d'Or history.

Victor Ikpeba - 1997

The ‘Prince of Monaco' earned a Ballon ‘Or nomination in 1997. The former Borussia Dortmund forward was sensational for the French club that year.

Ikpeba netted 16 league goals during the 1996-1997 season and then netted four UEFA Champions League coal.

He managed to garner two votes as he finished 32nd in the Ballon d'Or rankings.

Sunday Oliseh - 1998

What a year he had. Oliseh was nominated for the Ballon d’Or in 1998, the prize which was eventually won by Zinedine Zidane.

The Nigerian international was rewarded for his performances for Ajax in the Eredivisie. He also scored an iconic goal against Spain in Nigeria’s opening fixture of the World Cup in France.

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Boxing

Asisat Oshoala - 2022

The Super Falcons' striker finished 16th in the women's category last year. She joined her Barcelona Fememi teammate, Alexia Putellas, who won the prize during the gala.

Oshoala became the first African to be nominated for the prize in a 30-woman shortlist.

Martins leads Nigeria’s scoring chart

Sports Brief also reported on Nigerians who wrote their names in the history books of European football, with Victor Osimhen already becoming a legend of Italian football.

The Napoli striker has notched two goals in the UEFA Champions League this season - having netted twice for Lille before - taking his goals tally in the competition to four.

Despite the deadly forward's excellent form in the Serie A so far, former Inter Milan striker, Obafemi Martins remains Nigeria’s top scorer of all time in UCL history.