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 Real Madrid legend scored in every European Cup final from 1956 to 1960, including the famous 7-3 win over Eintracht Frankfurt?

   AKopaBPuskasCGentoDDi Stéfano

   Real Madrid thrashed Eintracht Frankfurt 7-3 at Hampden Park in front of 127,000 in 1960.

2. Arsenal and Ajax great Dennis Bergkamp got his unusual first name from a footballer his father admired. Who?

   ADenis ComptonBDenis LawCDennis Bergkamp Sr.DDenis Tueart

   He was named after Scottish striker Denis Law; an extra 'n' was added because the Dutch registrar wouldn't accept 'Denis'.

3. Who was the first player to win the Ballon d'Or three times in a row?

   ARonaldoBPlatiniCMessiDCruyff

   Michel Platini won it in 1983, 1984 and 1985 while at Juventus — the first man to win three in a row, a record Messi later broke with four straight (2009-2012).

4. Alongside Cruyff, which future Ballon d'Or winner played in Feyenoord's 1984 double side?

   AMarco van BastenBFrank RijkaardCRuud GullitDRonald Koeman

   Ruud Gullit, later the 1987 Ballon d'Or winner, starred in the 1984 double side.

5. Who won the inaugural FIFA Puskás Award in 2009?

   ACristiano RonaldoBZlatan IbrahimovićCLionel MessiDNeymar

   Ronaldo's 40-yard thunderbolt for Manchester United against Porto won the first Puskas Award in 2009.

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