Multiple winners of FIFA football Ballon d'Or 2021

The Ballon d’Or is an annual football prize presented by France Football. The award, voted for by football journalists, is given to the male player who was deemed to have played the best football over the previous 12 months. Unsurprisingly, two of the greatest footballers of all time, Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo, top the list of all-time winners. Messi won the title for another record-breaking seventh time in 2021, after received it at the previous ceremony in 2019. while Ronaldo sits in second place with five trophies to his name.

Cristiano Ronaldo

Portugal’s Cristiano Ronaldo won his first Ballon d’Or in 2008 when he was still playing for Manchester United. He was also voted the club’s player of the year that season and helped them to win three successive league titles between 2007 and 2009. Manchester United remain the all-time leaders in number of English top flight wins, having taken home the trophy 20 times. Ronaldo subsequently won four Ballon d’Or trophies during his time at Real Madrid, where he won the Spanish league twice and the Champions League four times. Real Madrid dominated the Champions League in recent years and took home the trophy four out of five times between 2013 and 2018. They are by far the most successful team in European Cup history, having lifted the prestigious trophy a total of 13 times.

Lionel Messi

It is difficult to mention the successes of Cristiano Ronaldo without mentioning those of his rival, Lionel Messi. The Argentinian won the Ballon d’Or four years running between 2009 and 2012 and claimed the trophy twice more in 2015 and 2019. Even as he enters the latter stages of his career, he remains one of the most valuable players on the planet and an integral part of both FC Barcelona and the Argentinean national team. He has won La Liga 10 times and has also been part of the winning Barcelona Champions League side four times, one short of Ronaldo’s tally.