Every Ballon d'Or Winner (1956–2025)

70 entries · verified 2026-07-20 · free · hand-checked by Ball IQ

The Ballon d'Or is football's most prestigious individual prize, first handed to England winger Stanley Matthews in 1956. Originally awarded by France Football to the best player in Europe, it later opened up to players worldwide and, from 2010 to 2015, merged with FIFA's award to become the FIFA Ballon d'Or before returning to France Football control. This page lists every men's winner in order, alongside the club they were at when they lifted the trophy and their nationality.

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1. Which player held the all-time international appearances record with 196 caps before Cristiano Ronaldo overtook him in 2023?

   AMohamed Al-DeayeaBSergio RamosCBader Al-MutawaDAhmed Hassan

   Kuwait's Bader Al-Mutawa held the men's international caps record with 196 until Cristiano Ronaldo surpassed him in 2023.

2. When Brazilian forward Denílson moved from São Paulo to Real Betis in 1998, his fee made him the world's most expensive player at the time. Roughly how much was it?

   A£60 millionB£45 millionC£21.5 millionD£8 million

   A Spanish club not usually associated with record buys briefly held the world transfer record after a World Cup summer.

3. Finish this famous Johan Cruyff line about his footballing philosophy at Barcelona: 'Playing football is very simple, but...'

   A'...playing simple football is the hardest thing there is.'B'...the ball decides the game.'C'...a manager must be ruthless.'D'...winning is everything.'

   Cruyff's paradox captured his whole ethos — positional play and crisp passing that look effortless but take a lifetime to master.

4. In which year did Real Madrid win their first LaLiga title?

   A1954B1936C1932D1929

   Madrid claimed the 1931-32 championship, their first, a few seasons after the Spanish league launched in 1929.

5. Ronaldinho was briefly imprisoned in 2020 — in which country?

   ABrazilBUSACParaguayDColombia

   Ronaldinho was arrested in Asunción in March 2020 for entering Paraguay on a falsified passport, spending around a month in jail before being moved to house arrest.

The modern era belongs to two players: Lionel Messi holds the record with eight Ballons d'Or, while Cristiano Ronaldo has won five. Between 2008 and 2023 the pair claimed the award 13 times in 16 years — the run broken only by Luka Modrić (2018), Karim Benzema (2022) and the cancelled 2020 edition. Kaká (2007) was the last winner before the duopoly took hold, and Rodri (2024) the first to follow it. No award was given in 2020, when the ceremony was cancelled during the COVID-19 pandemic — the only blank year in the award's history.

A few names stand out for rarity: Lev Yashin remains the only goalkeeper ever to win it, in 1963, and Michel Platini, Johan Cruyff and Marco van Basten are the three players to have won it three times each. The most recent winner is Ousmane Dembélé, who took the 2025 award after leading Paris Saint-Germain to their first Champions League title.

More on the Ballon d'Or

• Players With the Most Ballon d'Or Awards 10 entries

Every Ballon d'Or Winner (1956–2025) — FAQ