Players With the Most Ballon d'Or Awards
10 entries · verified 2026-07-20 · free · hand-checked by Ball IQ
The Ballon d'Or has gone to the best player in the world (in Europe, until 2007) every year since 1956. This page ranks the players who have won it more than once — the small club of true greats who dominated their eras.
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Which superstar was playing the final season of his career while winning Feyenoord's 1984 league-and-cup double?
Cruyff joined from Ajax and won the 1984 double in his last playing season.
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Which West German captain lifted the World Cup as a player in 1974 and then as a manager in 1990 — both times with West Germany?
'Der Kaiser' joined Zagallo as the first men to win the World Cup as both player and coach, a feat since matched only by Didier Deschamps.
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Which player scored a record 50 La Liga goals in the 2011-12 season — still the highest single-season tally in a top-five European league?
His total of 73 goals in all competitions that season (including Copa del Rey and Champions League) is also the most a player has ever scored in a single European season.
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Which three legends starred in the famous early-2000s Pepsi 'cowboy' advert?
The famous 2002 Pepsi advert featured Ronaldinho, David Beckham and Ronaldo R9 in a western-themed commercial.
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Pep Guardiola was part of Barcelona's 'Dream Team' that won the European Cup in 1992 — who was the manager?
Johan Cruyff managed the Dream Team that beat Sampdoria 1-0 in the 1992 European Cup final at Wembley.
| Rank | Player | Ballon d'Ors | Years won |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Lionel Messi | 8 | 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2015, 2019, 2021, 2023 |
| 2 | Cristiano Ronaldo | 5 | 2008, 2013, 2014, 2016, 2017 |
| 3 | Johan Cruyff | 3 | 1971, 1973, 1974 |
| 3 | Marco van Basten | 3 | 1988, 1989, 1992 |
| 3 | Michel Platini | 3 | 1983, 1984, 1985 |
| 6 | Alfredo Di Stéfano | 2 | 1957, 1959 |
| 6 | Franz Beckenbauer | 2 | 1972, 1976 |
| 6 | Karl-Heinz Rummenigge | 2 | 1980, 1981 |
| 6 | Kevin Keegan | 2 | 1978, 1979 |
| 6 | Ronaldo | 2 | 1997, 2002 |
Lionel Messi stands alone at the top with a record eight, ahead of Cristiano Ronaldo on five. Behind that modern duopoly sit three of the game's all-time icons — Johan Cruyff, Michel Platini and Marco van Basten — each a three-time winner.
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- Every Ballon d'Or Winner (1956–2025) 70 entries