The stars of the beautiful game will head to Paris on Monday evening for the 2024 Ballon d’Or ceremony and Real Madrid’s Vinicius Junior will be the frontrunner for the prestigious men’s award. Barcelona’s Aitana Bonmati is favorite to win a second successive women’s title.
Vinicius, who inherited the iconic No. 7 shirt handed down from Cristiano Ronaldo, has been the overwhelming favorite to take over from Lionel Messi as the Men’s Ballon d’Or winner after his incredible season in which he won the Spanish league and the Champions League.
Real Madrid head coach Carlo Ancelotti hailed Vinicius’s character after his recent hat-trick in a 5-2 Champions League win over Borussia Dortmund: “Vinicius is going to win, and not just because of the three goals but because of his extraordinary character.”
The expectation is that, in the women’s category, 26-year-old Bonmati will defend her title after proving a pivotal player in Barcelona’s historic quadruple-winning season with the domestic league, cup, Spanish Supercopa, and Champions League.
Overview of the Ballon d’Or
The Ballon d’Or is considered the most prestigious individual honor in football, as it celebrates the best in the world. Formed in 1956 by France Football to celebrate male players, it has grown in status to include women players, coaches, and clubs-perhaps even making it akin to the Oscars of football.
Lionel Messi currently leads in the number of Ballon d’Or wins, having eight in his name, while Cristiano Ronaldo has five. Both the legends, though, are approaching the end of their careers, and therefore, the race for the award has opened further and given an opportunity to a new generation.
This is the third year in which the winner will be decided based on performances from August 1, 2023 to July 31, 2024 rather than on a calendar year. The list of 30 nominees was announced on September 4, 2024.
Ceremony Details
The 68th Ballon d’Or ceremony will take place on October 28 at the Theatre du Chatelet in Paris, starting at 8:45 PM local time (11:45 PM UAE).
Men’s Ballon d’Or Nominees
Jude Bellingham (England, Real Madrid)
Hakan Calhanoglu (Turkey, Inter Milan)
Dani Carvajal (Spain, Real Madrid)
Ruben Dias (Portugal, Manchester City)
Artem Dovbyk (Ukraine, Dnipro/Girona/Roma)
Phil Foden (England, Manchester City)
Alejandro Grimaldo (Spain, Bayer Leverkusen)
Erling Haaland (Norway, Manchester City)
Mats Hummels (Germany, Borussia Dortmund)
Harry Kane (England, Bayern Munich)
Toni Kroos (Germany, Real Madrid)
Ademola Lookman (Nigeria, Atalanta)
Emiliano Martinez (Argentina, Aston Villa)
Lautaro Martinez (Argentina, Inter Milan)
Kylian Mbappe (France, Paris Saint-Germain/Real Madrid)
Martin Odegaard (Norway, Arsenal)
Dani Olmo (Spain, Leipzig/Barcelona)
Cole Palmer (England, Manchester City/Chelsea)
Declan Rice (England, Arsenal)
Rodri (Spain, Manchester City)
Antonio Rudiger (Germany, Real Madrid)
Bukayo Saka (England, Arsenal)
William Saliba (France, Arsenal)
Federico Valverde (Uruguay, Real Madrid)
Vinicius Junior (Brazil, Real Madrid)
Vitinha (Portugal, Paris Saint-Germain)
Nico Williams (Spain, Athletic Club)
Florian Wirtz (Germany, Bayer Leverkusen)
Granit Xhaka (Switzerland, Bayer Leverkusen)
Lamine Yamal (Spain, Barcelona)
Current Favorites
Vinicius Junior is the clear favourite, given his importance in Real Madrid’s successes last season. His hat-trick against Borussia Dortmund underlines his credentials, while 26 goals and 12 assists in 51 games for club and country is what he boasts. Should he win, that would make him the third different name besides Messi or Ronaldo to lift the Ballon d’Or since 2007.
His main rival would seem to be Manchester City’s Rodri, who played a key part in both the Premier League title and Spain’s European Championship win.
Other Awards at the Ceremony
A number of other awards will also be doled out including: the Women’s Ballon d’Or, Men’s and Women’s Coaches of the Year. A list of some of the other nominees is below:
Women’s Ballon d’Or Nominees
Barbra Banda (Zambia, Shanghai RCB/Orlando Pride)
Aitana Bonmati (Spain, Barcelona)
Lucy Bronze (England, Barcelona/Chelsea)
The Nominees Mariona Caldentey (Spain, Barcelona/Arsenal)
Tabitha Chawinga (Malawi, Paris Saint-Germain/Lyon)
Grace Geyoro (France, Paris Saint-Germain)
Caroline Graham Hansen (Norway, Barcelona)
Alexia Putellas (Spain, Barcelona)
Lauren James (England, Chelsea)
Lev Yashin Trophy (Best Goalkeeper) Nominees
Diogo Costa (Portugal, Porto)
Gianluigi Donnarumma (Italy, Paris Saint-Germain)
Emiliano Martinez (Argentina, Aston Villa)
Kopa Trophy (Best Under-21 Player) Nominees
Lamine Yamal (Spain, Barcelona)
Alejandro Garnacho (Argentina, Manchester United)
Coaches of the Year Nominees
Men’s: Xabi Alonso (Bayer Leverkusen), Carlo Ancelotti (Real Madrid)
Women’s: Sarina Wiegman (England), Emma Hayes (Chelsea)
Selection Criteria for Ballon d’Or
The winner of the Ballon d’Or is selected through a tight electoral process by France Football. It is based on three main criteria: the individual performances, team achievements, and fair play.
Voting takes place among a worldwide jury of journalists-one representative per country of the top 100 countries in FIFA rankings for men and top 50 for women. Each juror listed their top 10 players, awarding points in this manner: 15 for first place, down to 1 for tenth. The player pulling in the most points overall wins, though tiebreakers are based on first-place votes and subsequent rankings.
Vinicius Junior, alongside other finalists, will take center stage as all eyes approach the forthcoming ceremony to determine who gets the hold of football’s most coveted individual honor.
