Bet on the Ballon d’Or with our guide to the most prestigious individual award in football!
It’s almost the most wonderful time of the year again. No, not Christmas, it’s almost time for the Balon d’Or ceremonies and for fans that love to argue over who the best player in the world is this is our Christmas.
Below we will give you some Balon d’Or background, the lowdown of what to expect from this year’s ceremony and hopefully some good tips and predictions on who will take home the trophy this year.
What is the Ballon d’Or?
For those who may have never heard of the Ballon d’Or, it is an award given out every year by France Football (a magazine) to the best men’s football player every calendar year. The first award was given out in 1956 and until 1995 the award was only for European footballers. Since then, any professional player in the world can win it and it is considered the most prestigious individual award in the sport.
The importance of the award has grown every year and that growth can probably be attributed to social media. We live in the age of the sport hot take and no other subject is more talked about than the GOAT (greatest of all time) debate. We happen to live in an era when two of the greatest players, Ronaldo and Messi, have coinciding careers. This means social media is full of arguments on the daily about who is actually the greatest.
Of course, there is no better way to back up your argument than pointing to how many Ballon D’or awards a player has. As only Luka Modric has won the award outside of those two in the last 13 years, we can see why it gets so much attention.
So how many Ballon d’Or does Messi have and how many Ballon d’Or does Ronaldo have? Well, Ronaldo has 5 and Messi has a record-breaking 6. So, we can see why Ballon d’Or 2021 could be the one that finally separates the two.
What is the Ballon d’Or?
For those who may have never heard of the Ballon d’Or, it is an award given out every year by France Football (a magazine) to the best men’s football player every calendar year. The first award was given out in 1956 and until 1995 the award was only for European footballers. Since then, any professional player in the world can win it and it is considered the most prestigious individual award in the sport.
The importance of the award has grown every year and that growth can probably be attributed to social media. We live in the age of the sport hot take and no other subject is more talked about than the GOAT (greatest of all time) debate. We happen to live in an era when two of the greatest players, Ronaldo and Messi, have coinciding careers. This means social media is full of arguments on the daily about who is actually the greatest.
Of course, there is no better way to back up your argument than pointing to how many Ballon D’or awards a player has. As only Luka Modric has won the award outside of those two in the last 13 years, we can see why it gets so much attention.
So how many Ballon d’Or does Messi have and how many Ballon d’Or does Ronaldo have? Well, Ronaldo has 5 and Messi has a record-breaking 6. So, we can see why Ballon d’Or 2021 could be the one that finally separates the two.
Ballon d’Or Nominees
Find all the players that could be awarded the most prestigious award in football below:
| Player | Club |
| Cesar Azpilicueta | Chelsea |
| Nicolo Barella | Inter Milan |
| Karim Benzema | Real Madrid |
| Leonardo Bonucci | Juventus |
| Kevin De Bruyne | Manchester City |
| Giorgio Chiellini | Juventus |
| Cristiano Ronaldo | Manchester United |
| Ruben Dias | Manchester City |
| Gianluigi Donnarumma | Paris Saint-Germain |
| Bruno Fernandes | Manchester United |
| Phil Foden | Manchester City |
| Erling Haaland | Borussia Dortmund |
| Jorginho | Chelsea |
| Harry Kane | Tottenham |
| N’Golo Kante | Chelsea |
| Simon Kjaer | AC Milan |
| Robert Lewandowski | Bayern Munich |
| Romelu Lukaku | Chelsea |
| Riyad Mahrez | Manchester City |
| Lautaro Martinez | Inter Milan |
| Kylian Mbappe | Paris Saint-Germain |
| Lionel Messi | Paris Saint-Germain |
| Luka Modric | Real Madrid |
| Gerard Moreno | Villarreal |
| Mason Mount | Chelsea |
| Neymar | Paris Saint-Germain |
| Pedri | Barcelona |
| Mohamed Salah | Liverpool |
| Raheem Sterling | Manchester City |
| Luis Suarez | Atletico Madrid |
Balloon d’or Predictions
The most important thing to take from this article if you take nothing else is: do NOT bet on anyone outside the top two in the betting. This is either the Messi Ballon d’Or or the Lewandowski Ballon d’Or and don’t let anything else you see or hear tell you any different.
The Ballon d’Or is a narrative-driven award. There is no way Luka Modric was a better player than Messi the year he won. Modric however had dragged Croatia to a World Cup final and voters had Messi and Ronaldo fatigue. Modric has also been a great player for years so it was almost like a lifetime achievement award.
My point is the narrative swings voters. No matter how much you try to block the noise out it is impossible to avoid it. This year there is an incredibly interesting narrative battle.
There was no 2020 Ballon d’Or as due to Corona, French Football thought it would be unfair to give an award. This much more likely has to do with the French league being the only one not to play out the rest of their season after the corona stoppage but that’s a discussion for another time.
Lewandowski would have been the clear Ballon d’Or 2020 winner so the narrative behind him is he deserves one for the unbelievable form he has been in for the past two seasons. The narrative behind Messi is he finally won his first international tournament this year having come out of retirement to help his country win the Copa America. Help is an understatement here as he had the most goals and assists in the tournament.
The betting reflects this as up until recently it looked like it was going to be another Messi Ballon d’Or. Now however it’s so close that both they’re Ballon d’Or odds are hovering around evens and some bookmakers have Messi favourite whereas others have Lewandowski taking home the award. In the lead up you will hear stories about how Salah or Jorginiho could win the Ballon d’Or. Ignore any hype around these two, Ballon d’Or 2021 is going to Messi or Lewandowski.
Ballon d’or Odds
Find a list of all the odds for the Ballon d’Or Nominees 2021:
| Player | Odds |
| Lionel Messi | 8/11 |
| Robert Lewandowski | 1/1 |
| Mohamed Salah | 28/1 |
| Karim Benzema | 28/1 |
| Jorginho | 33/1 |
| Cristianio Ronaldo | 50/1 |
| Kevin de Bruyne | 50/1 |
| Ngolo Kante | 50/1 |
| Kylian Mbappe | 50/1 |
| Bruno Fernandes | 66/1 |
| Erling Haaland | 66/1 |
| Pedri | 66/1 |
| Neymar | 66/1 |
| Gianluigi Donnarumma | 66/1 |
| Riyad Mahrez | 100/1 |
| Simon Kjaer | 100/1 |
| Gerard Moreno | 100/1 |
| Phil Foden | 100/1 |
| Harry Kane | 100/1 |
| Romelu Lukaku | 100/1 |
| Ruben Dias | 100/1 |
| Luis Suarez | 100/1 |
| Mason Mount | 100/1 |
| Nicolo Barella | 125/1 |
| Cesar Azpilicueta | 125/1 |
| Leonardo Bonucci | 125/1 |
| Giorgio Chiellini | 200/1 |
| Luka Modric | 200/1 |
| Lautaro Martinez | 200/1 |
| Raheem Sterling | 200/1 |
Best Ballon D’or 2021 Bookmakers
If you want to bet on the Ballon D’or 2021, then these three sites won’t steer you wrong:
William Hill
Not only does William Hill offer great odds for this year’s Ballon d’Or but they also have an excellent feature called #yourodds Ballon d’Or. Here you can request, from the William Hill team, some prices for Ballon d’Or futures. For example, currently, on the site, you can bet on Erling Haaland winning the award before the end of 2025.
Coral
Odds are changing all the time but at the time of writing Messi has again taken over the favourite role from Lewandowski. Coral still has both at 10/11 currently. It is going to be very hard to find a better price if you fancy Messi to win so if he is your man get to Coral ASAP!
Summary
Hopefully, now you are well equipped to find your perfect bet for the Ballon d’Or. Remember the main advice is do not look at anyone outside of Lewandowski and Messi. If you are confident in one of these but feel what you are reading and hearing more about the other maybe bide your time before a bet. The award ceremony is on the 29th of November and the prices will fluctuate a lot before then so pick your moment carefully.
Ballon d’Or FAQ
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How many Ballon d’Or does Messi have?
6. -
Who won the Ballon d’Or 2020?
Due to corona, France football made the decision not to award anyone the 2020 Ballon d’Or. -
How many Ballon d’Or does Ronaldo have?
Ronaldo is one behind Messi with 5. -
Who has the most Ballon d’Or?
Messi’s 6 is the most any player has won. -
When is Ballon d’Or 2021?
The ceremonies take place on 29/11/2021.Previous Ballon d’Or Winners
The below list contains all Previous Ballon d’or Winners –
DISCLAIMER: brace yourself for the ultimate list of footballing greats!
Year Player Nation Club 2019 Lionel Messi Argentina Barcelona 2018 Luka Modric Croatia Real Madrid 2017 Cristianio Ronaldo Portugal Real Madrid 2016 Cristianio Ronaldo Portugal Real Madrid 2015 Lionel Messi Argentina Barcelona 2014 Cristianio Ronaldo Portugal Real Madrid 2013 Cristianio Ronaldo Portugal Real Madrid 2012 Lionel Messi Argentina Barcelona 2011 Lionel Messi Argentina Barcelona 2010 Lionel Messi Argentina Barcelona 2009 Lionel Messi Argentina Barcelona 2008 Cristianio Ronaldo Portugal Manchester United 2007 Kaká Brazil Milan 2006 Fabio Cannavaro Italy Real Madrid 2005 Ronaldinho Brazil Barcelona 2004 Andriy Shevchenko Ukrain Milan 2003 Pavel Nedvěd Czech Republic Juventus 2002 Ronaldo Brazil Real Madrid 2001 Michael Owen England Liverpool 2000 Luís Figo Portugal Real Madrid 1999 Rivaldo Brazil Barcelona 1998 Zinedine Zidane France Juventus 1997 Ronaldo Brazil Internazionale 1996 Matthias Sammer Germany Borussia Dortmund 1995 George Weah Liberia Milan 1994 Hristo Stoichkov Bulgaria Barcelona 1993 Roberto Baggio Italy Juventus 1992 Marco van Basten Netherlands Milan 1991 Jean-Pierre Papin France Marseille 1990 Lothar Matthäus Germany Internazionale 1989 Marco van Basten Netherlands Milan 1988 Marco van Basten Netherlands Milan 1987 Ruud Gullit Netherlands Milan 1986 Igor Belanov Soviet Union Dynamo Kyiv 1985 Michel Platini France Juventus 1984 Michel Platini France Juventus 1983 Michel Platini France Juventus 1982 Paolo Rossi Italy Juventus 1981 Karl-Heinz Rummenigge West Germany Bayern Munich 1980 Karl-Heinz Rummenigge West Germany Bayern Munich 1979 Kevin Keegan England Hamburg 1978 Kevin Keegan England Hamburg 1977 Allan Simonsen Denmark Borussia M”nchengladbach 1976 Franz Beckenbauer West Germany Bayern Munich 1975 Oleg Blokhin Soviet Union Dynamo Kyiv 1974 Johan Cruyff Netherlands Barcelona 1973 Johan Cruyff Netherlands Barcelona 1972 Franz Beckenbauer West Germany Bayern Munich 1971 Johan Cruyff Netherlands Ajax 1970 Gerd Müller West Germany Bayern Munich 1969 Gianni Rivera Italy Milan 1968 George Best Northern Ireland Manchester United 1967 Flórián Albert Hungary Ferencv rosi TC 1966 Bobby Charlton England Manchester United 1965 Eusébio Portugal Benfica 1964 Denis Law Scotland Manchester United 1963 Lev Yashin Soviet Union Dynamo Moscow 1962 Josef Masopust Czechoslovakia Dukla Prague 1961 Omar Sívori Italy Juventus 1960 Luis Suárez Spain Barcelona 1959 Alfredo Di Stéfano Spain Real Madrid 1958 Raymond Kopa France Real Madrid 1957 Alfredo Di Stéfano Spain Real Madrid 1956 Stanley Matthews England Blackpool
