Ballon d'Or: Lionel Messi opens up on true feelings about Benzema winning prize for the 1st time
FootballCristiano Ronaldo’s Voting History in Ballon d’Or and FIFA’s The Best Award
- The 2023 Ballon d'Or recently concluded with Lionel Messi winning his 8th award
- Cristiano Ronaldo was not nominated for the first time since 2003
- The Al-Nassr and Portugal veteran participated in the voting process in the last few years, and his choices in the Ballon d'Or and FIFA's The Best Awards have emerged
The Ballon d'Or award is synonymous with Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi. The two football icons dominated the award for over a decade, but their dominance is now coming to an end.
Ronaldo has voted in both the Ballon d'Or and FIFA's The Best Award, and the history of his choices has emerged.
Ronaldo won his first Ballon d'Or in 2008 after leading Manchester United to the Champions League and Premier League double. Over the next decade, it went back and forth between him and his longtime nemesis, Messi.
In that time, he won five Ballon d'Ors while Messi scooped eight, with his latest coming in 2023. Both have won FIFA's The Best Award twice.
From 2010 to 2015, FIFA and France Football's Ballon d'Or worked together to award the best player in the world. Since 2016, the two bodies have held separate award ceremonies.
Who Ronaldo voted for
Votes from national team coaches and captains decided the winner of the Ballon d'Or while the award was merged with FIFA between 2010 and 2015.
The Al-Nassr superstar voted four times for the Ballon d'Or winner as Portugal captain but has never voted for Messi. After the separation, journalists from the top 100 FIFA-ranked countries participated as jurors.
Fans, captains, coaches, and media representatives vote in the FIFA Best Awards. Ronaldo has voted every year apart from 2022.
In 2010, he gave the first-place vote to Xavi, who helped Spain win the World Cup that year. His Real Madrid teammate Iker Casillas got his second vote, while Wesley Sneijder got the third vote after leading Inter Milan to the treble.
2023 Ballon d'Or: Ronaldo Nazario picks between Lionel Messi and Erling Haaland
FootballHis compatriot Bruno Alves then took over voting duties in 2011 and 2012 and voted for Ronaldo first in both years. Here's a summary of Ronaldo's voting history, per Planet Football.
Ronaldo's Ballon d'Or voting history
2010 - Xavi, Iker Casillas, Wesley Sneijder
2013 - Radamel Falcao, Gareth Bale, Mesut Ozil
2014 - Sergio Ramos, Gareth Bale, Karim Benzema
2015 - Karim Benzema, James Rodriguez, Gareth Bale
Ronaldo's FIFA The Best voting history
2016 - Gareth Bale, Luka Modric, Sergio Ramos
2017 - Luka Modric, Sergio Ramos, Marcelo
2018 - Raphael Varane, Luka Modric, Antoine Griezmann
2019 - Mathijs de Ligt, Frenkie de Jong, Kylian Mbappe
2020 - Robert Lewandowski, Lionel Messi, Kylian Mbappe
2021 - Robert Lewandowski, N'Golo Kante, Jorginho
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Ronaldo reaches 400 goal mark post-30
How Ballon d'Or voting works ahead of Messi vs. Haaland 2023 battle
FootballIn his last outing for Al-Nassr, Sports Brief reported on Ronaldo achieving another goal-scoring feat with his strike during the 2-0 victory against Al Khaleej on November 4.
The veteran's 26th-minute strike not only bolstered his remarkable season statistics but also marked an astonishing milestone of 400 goals scored after turning 30 years old.
Ronaldo is enjoying a great 2023/24 season with Al-Nassr. He has scored 12 goals in the Saudi Pro League and is the leading goalscorer.