Ballon d’Or history: Full list of winners from 1956 to 2025

Jukwaa

🇳🇬 Here's What Happened

PUNCH Online reported on Tuesday that according to UEFA on its website, the Ballon d’Or has been awarded annually since 1956 and remains one of football’s most prestigious individual honours, recognising exceptional talent and outstanding achievements on the pitch.

UEFA noted that the award was created by France Football magazine, with Matthews becoming the inaugural winner in 1956 after claiming the first edition of a prize that would eventually become one of the game’s most recognisable individual honours.

France Football initially restricted the Ballon d’Or to European players, meaning several iconic footballers, including Brazil’s Pelé and Argentina’s Diego Maradona, were not eligible during much of their playing careers under the original rules.

📌 Key Details

The eligibility criteria changed in 1995, allowing players of any nationality playing for European clubs to compete for the award.

This change proved historic as Liberia’s George Weah became the first African and first non-European winner of the Ballon d’Or that year.

Another significant expansion followed in 2007, when the award became global and eligibility was extended beyond players competing for European clubs.

The Ballon d’Or underwent perhaps its biggest branding change between 2010 and 2015, when France Football partnered FIFA and merged the award with the FIFA World Player of the Year prize.

During that six-year period, the award was known as the FIFA Ballon d’Or, with Messi winning four successive editions from 2010 to 2012 before Cristiano Ronaldo claimed the prize in 2013 and 2014.

The partnership ended after the 2015 edition, with France Football resuming control of the Ballon d’Or from 2016, while FIFA subsequently continued with its separate The Best awards.

📰 Source: Punch Nigeria

0 0