Get up to speed with everything you must know about the 2021 Ballon d’Or winners list as Lionel Messi secures his seventh Golden Ball
Yesterday was a magical night for the Argentine forward who claimed his seventh Ballon d’Or beating Polish striker Robert Lewandowski in the process. Meanwhile, many pundits wanted Lewandowski to clinch the title this year ahead of the Argentine, but to be brutally honest, Lewandowski had a superb last year and deserved to win the trophy, but the French football abandoned Ballon d’Or last year owing to the Coronavirus pandemic.
Ballon d’Or 2021 Winner: Full Votes And Top 20 Ranking
HERE IS THE WINNER!
SEVEN BALLON D’OR FOR LIONEL MESSI! #ballondor pic.twitter.com/U2SywJmruC
— Ballon d'Or #ballondor (@francefootball) November 29, 2021
He deserved to win the Ballon d’Or last year but Messi deserved it more this year after their superb Copa America triumph. It might be the time to present Messi with every honor we can get our hands on because the Argentine forward could be hanging his boots shortly. Meanwhile, it was the first time Cristiano Ronaldo missed out on the top 3 positions and did not even attend the Gala for the first time in 10 years.
Here is the list and voting of the top 20 players who were shortlisted for the 2021 Ballon d’Or:
1. Lionel Messi (PSG)- 613
2. Robert Lewandowski (Bayern Munich)- 580
3. Jorginho (Chelsea)- 460
4. Karim Benzema (Real Madrid)- 239
5. N’Golo Kante (Chelsea)- 186
6. Cristiano Ronaldo (Manchester United)- 178
7. Mohamed Salah (Liverpool)- 121
8. Kevin De Bruyne (Manchester City)- 73
9. Kylian Mbappe (Paris Saint-Germain)- 58
10. Gianluigi Donnarumma (Paris Saint-Germain)- 36
11. Erling Haaland (Borussia Dortmund)- 33
12. Romelu Lukaku (Chelsea)- 26
13. Giorgio Chiellini (Juventus)- 26
14. Leonardo Bonucci (Juventus)- 18
15. Raheem Sterling (Manchester City)- 10
16. Neymar (PSG)- 9
17. Luis Suarez (Atletico Madrid)- 8
18. Simon Kjaer (Milan)- 8
19. Mason Mount (Chelsea)- 7
20. Riyad Mahrez (Manchester City)- 7
Ballon d’Or 2021: Every Award Winners List
1. 2021 Ballon d’Or Femenin – Alexia Putellas (FC Barcelona)
Alexia Putellas secured the Ballon d’Or Feminin award by the widest of margin as no other candidate came closer. Subsequently, she helped her team to achieve UEFA Champions League glory last season and deserved the award.
The 2021 Women's #ballondor is… @alexiaputellas 🇪🇸 of @FCBfemeni ! pic.twitter.com/cwSMaSKw2U
— Ballon d'Or #ballondor (@francefootball) November 29, 2021
2. Club of the Year – Chelsea
Premier League club Chelsea were awarded the Club of the Year trophy because of their sheer masterclass in last year’s UEFA Champions League. It was purely deserved by the Blues who have been in top form this season.
The club of the year award goes to @ChelseaFC ! #ballondor pic.twitter.com/U1eyVwgqyB
— Ballon d'Or #ballondor (@francefootball) November 29, 2021
3. Best Striker of the Year award – Robert Lewandowksi (Bayern Munich)
Polish striker Robert Lewandowski came second behind Lionel Messi in the Ballon d’Or rankings and clinched the Striker of the Year award. There was no doubt that Lewandowski was going to miss out on this trophy as he is one of the best strikers in the world right now.
The striker of the year award goes to… Robert Lewandowski ! 🦾 #ballondor pic.twitter.com/OEy9mlSjki
— Ballon d'Or #ballondor (@francefootball) November 29, 2021
4. Yashin Trophy 2021 – Gianluigi Donnarumma (PSG)
Gianluigi Donnarumma edged out Edouard Mendy and secured the Yachine trophy after winning the EURO 2020. He was instrumental in Italy’s run to the final of the tournament and made many important saves to help his team.
The 2021 #tropheeyachine is… @gigiodonna1 🇪🇸 of @PSG_inside ! #ballondor" pic.twitter.com/IVGmTkEvr7
— Ballon d'Or #ballondor (@francefootball) November 29, 2021
5. Kopa trophy (best player under 21) – Pedri (Barcelona)
Pedri was awarded the best under-21 player because of his emergence into World football last year. 19-years-old Spanish midfielder featured in 54 games for the club in all competitions and earned his debut with the Spanish National team.
Pedri is your 2021 #kopatrophee! #ballondor pic.twitter.com/B2zYICnOFG
— Ballon d'Or #ballondor (@francefootball) November 29, 2021