Midfielder Rodri awarded the prestigious Ballon d’Or; see full list of all men’s winners from 1956 to 2024
Rodri, a midfielder for Manchester City and Spain, was named the world’s finest footballer on Monday when he received the coveted Ballon d’Or. To win the award, he defeated English prodigy Jude Bellingham and Brazilian great Vinicius Jr. of Real Madrid.
The remarkable feat of Manchester City winning the Premier League championship for an unprecedented fourth straight season was made possible in large part by Rodri’s outstanding performances. He was also awarded the best player in this year’s European Championship, as Spain won their fourth consecutive championship, setting a new record.
https://twitter.com/ballondor/status/1851040807115014199
Since Lothar Matthaus in 1990, the 28-year-old Madrid native became the first defensive midfielder to win the Ballon d’Or. In addition, he is just the third Spaniard to get the honor, after Luis Suarez (1960) and Alfredo Di Stefano (1957 and 1959).
https://twitter.com/ballondor/status/1851038841064353963
No Spaniard has won the Ballon d’Or since Barcelona great Luis Suarez more than 60 years ago, despite the fact that Spanish league players have dominated the award’s history.
Considering that Spain’s “golden generation” won the European Championships in 2008 and 2012 and the World Cup in 2010, this is an incredible accomplishment.
https://x.com/ballondor/status/1851034890902352220
“Today is not a triumph for me; rather, it is for Spanish football and the other players who deserve it but haven’t won, such as Sergio Busquets, Iker (Casillas), Xavi (Hernandez), and Andrés Iniesta, among many others. “It is for Spanish football and the midfielder’s figure,” Rodri said at the event.
“Today many friends have written to me and have told me that football has won, for giving visibility to so many midfielders who have a job in the shadows and today it is coming to light.”Even though I’m just a normal person with morals, who studies, tries to do things correctly, and doesn’t strive to fit in with preconceptions, I’ve managed to reach the top, and I owe it all to you.”
https://x.com/ballondor/status/1851033619634040984
Following Rodri’s announcement on Monday as the 2024 winner, the list of Ballon d’Or winners since the award’s introduction in 1956.
- 1956 – Stanley Matthews (England)
- 1957 – Alfredo Di Stefano (Spain)
- 1958 – Raymond Kopa (France)
- 1959 – Alfredo Di Stefano (Spain)
- 1960 – Luis Suarez (Spain)
- 1961 – Omar Sivori (Italy)
- 1962 – Josef Masopust (Czechoslovakia)
- 1963 – Lev Yashin (Soviet Union)
- 1964 – Denis Law (Scotland)
- 1965 – Eusebio (Portugal)
- 1966 – Bobby Charlton (England)
- 1967 – Florian Albert (Hungary)
- 1968 – George Best (Northern Ireland)
- 1969 – Gianni Rivera (Italy)
- 1970 – Gerd Mueller (West Germany)
- 1971 – Johan Cruyff (Netherlands)
- 1972 – Johan Cruyff (Netherlands)
- 1973 – Johan Cruyff (Netherlands)
- 1974 – Johan Cruyff (Netherlands)
- 1975 – Oleg Blokhin (Soviet Union)
- 1976 – Franz Beckenbauer (West Germany)
- 1977 – Allan Simonsen (Denmark)
- 1978 – Kevin Keegan (England)
- 1979 – Kevin Keegan (England)
- 1980 – Karl-Heinz Rummenigge (West Germany)
- 1981 – Karl-Heinz Rummenigge (West Germany)
- 1982 – Paolo Rossi (Italy)
- 1983 – Michel Platini (France)
- 1984 – Michel Platini (France)
- 1985 – Michel Platini (France)
- 1986 – Igor Belanov (Soviet Union)
- 1987 – Ruud Gullit (Netherlands)
- 1988 – Marco van Basten (Netherlands)
- 1989 – Marco van Basten (Netherlands)
- 1990 – Lothar Matthaus (Germany)
- 1991 – Jean-Pierre Papin (France)
- 1992 – Marco van Basten (Netherlands)
- 1993 – Roberto Baggio (Italy)
- 1994 – Hristo Stoichkov (Bulgaria)
- 1995 – George Weah (Liberia)
- 1996 – Matthias Sammer (Germany)
- 1997 – Ronaldo (Brazil)
- 1998 – Zinedine Zidane (France)
- 1999 – Rivaldo (Brazil)
- 2000 – Luis Figo (Portugal)
- 2001 – Michael Owen (England)
- 2002 – Ronaldo (Brazil)
- 2003 – Pavel Nedved (Czech Republic)
- 2004 – Andriy Shevchenko (Ukraine)
- 2005 – Ronaldinho (Brazil)
- 2006 – Fabio Cannavaro (Italy)
- 2007 – Kaka (Brazil)
- 2008 – Cristiano Ronaldo (Portugal)
- 2009 – Lionel Messi (Argentina)
- 2010 – Lionel Messi (Argentina)
- 2011 – Lionel Messi (Argentina)
- 2012 – Lionel Messi (Argentina)
- 2013 – Cristiano Ronaldo (Portugal)
- 2014 – Cristiano Ronaldo (Portugal)
- 2015 – Lionel Messi (Argentina)
- 2016 – Cristiano Ronaldo (Portugal)
- 2017 – Cristiano Ronaldo (Portugal)
- 2018 – Luka Modric (Croatia)
- 2019 – Lionel Messi (Argentina)
- 2020 – Award Cancelled (COVID-19 pandemic)
- 2021 – Lionel Messi (Argentina)
- 2022 – Karim Benzema (France)
- 2023 – Lionel Messi (Argentina)
- 2024 – Rodri (Spain)
