Two Red Devils finished in the top 10, along with Kevin De Bruyne and Thibaut Courtois. Currently in the top 3, KDB achieves the best performance for a Belgian.
A seven-time winner and outgoing winner, Argentinian player Lionel Messi Not one of the nominees for the first time since 2006. Quintuple Ballon d’Or winner Cristiano Ronaldo finished 20th this year. The Portuguese were nominated for the 18th time.
Headlining Benzema, KDB 3rd, Courtois 7th
KB9 achieved a high-flying 2021-2022 campaign, leading Real to a La Liga – Champions League double. He managed 44 goals and 15 assists in 46 matches across all competitions. In C1, he was decisive throughout the final stages.
Benzema is on the list after Lionel Messi. He is the first Frenchman to win the most prestigious individual distinction since Zinedine Zidane in 1998. It was Zizo, his former coach at Real Madrid, who presented him with the trophy.
But Real’s decisive player in the final was Thibaut Courtois, who scripted several saves against the Liverpool attackers. The Belgian, named in the 30-man squad, kept 22 clean sheets in 52 games last season. Yasin won the trophyIt rewards the best goalkeeper and ranks 7th in the Ballon d’Or rankings.
beside him, Kevin De Bruyne finished 3rd. Master of the Sky Blues, he led his team to a new title in the Premier League, compiling 19 goals and 14 assists in 45 appearances.
KDB attended the Théâtre du Chatelet with his family.
Classification of the Ballon d’Or
1. Karim Benzema – French – Real Madrid
2. Sadio Mane – Senegal – Liverpool/Bayern Munich
3. Kevin De Bruyne – Belgium – Manchester City
4. Robert Lewandowski – Poland – Bayern Munich/FC Barcelona
5. Mo Salah – Egyptian – Liverpool
6. Kylian Mbappé – French – PSG
7. Thibaut Courtois – Belgium – Real Madrid
8. Vinicius Junior – Brazilian – Real Madrid
9. Luka Modric – Croatian – Real Madrid
10. Erling Holland – Norway – Dortmund/Manchester City
11. Heung-min Son – South Korean – Tottenham
12. Riyad Mahrez – Algeria – Manchester City
13. Sebastian Haller – Ivorian – Ajax Amsterdam
14. Fabinho – Brazilian – Liverpool
14. Rafael Leo – Portuguese – AC Milan
16. Virgil van Dijk – Dutch – Liverpool
17. Casemiro – Brazilian – Real Madrid
17. Dusan Vilahovic – Serbian – Fiorentina/Juventus
17. Luis Diaz – Colombian – Porto/Liverpool
20. Cristiano Ronaldo – Portugal – Manchester United
21. Harry Kane – English – Tottenham
22. Bernardo Silva – Portuguese – Manchester City
22. Phil Foden – English – Manchester City
22. Trent Alexander-Arnold – English – Liverpool
25. Joshua Kimmich – German – Bayern Munich
25. Mike Mignon – French – AC Milan
25. Darwin Nunez – Uruguayan – Benfica/Liverpool
25. Antonio Rüdiger – German – Chelsea/Real Madrid
25. Joa Cancelo – Argentina – Manchester City
25. Christopher Ngungu – French – Leipzig
Courtois won the Yachting Trophy for the best goalkeeper
Thibaut Courtois won the 7th Ballon d’Or Yasin TrophyAwarded to the best goalkeeper of the season.
Courtois, 30, is being rewarded collectively and individually at the end of an exceptional season. The last bastion of Real Madrid, winner of the Spanish championship and Champions League, the Red Devils produced decisive stops throughout the season, especially in the final of C1, which proved to be an insurmountable wall for the Liverpool players.
Courtois is the first Belgian player to win the trophy since 2019. He succeeds Italian Gianluigi Donnarumma on the list.
Alexia Butellas hit a double
Spain’s Alexia Butellas (28, Barcelona FC) won the women’s Ballon d’Or for the second consecutive year.
This trophy has been awarded since 2018.
Kavi was voted the best young man
Xavi, a Spaniard, won the Copa trophy for the best young player of the season (under 21). The Barcelona player received his trophy on Monday at the Ballon d’Or ceremony at the Théâtre du Chatelet in Paris.
The 18-year-old poet succeeds teammate Petri in winning the award, which was presented for the first time in 2018. The midfielder became the youngest Spanish international in history during the semi-final of the League of Nations against Italy on October 6, 2021. 17 years and 62 days. He made a total of 34 appearances and scored 2 goals with Barcelona last season.
Gert Müller Trophy Lewandowski’s top goalscorer
Poland’s Robert Lewandowski, renamed Gert Müller, claimed the world’s top scorer trophy for the second consecutive year.
The 34-year-old striker, who moved from Bayern Munich to FC Barcelona for €45m this summer, has scored 57 goals in 56 matches in all competitions during the 2021-2022 season (50 for club and 7 for selection). In the 2020-2021 financial year, he has scored 56 goals in 50 games.
In the Bundesliga, his last season with Bayern, “Levy” was top scorer with 35 goals in 34 matches. In 2020-2021, he has done even better with 41 goals in 29 matches, one more than legend Gerd Muller’s record of half a century (from the 1971-1972 season).
With his new club Barça, Lewandowski has already scored 14 goals in 13 matches, including 9 in La Liga. However, the Polish center-forward was quiet during Sunday’s Clasico against Real Madrid, won by Karim Benzema’s team (3-1).
Best first with Socrates prize: Mane laureate
At the Theater du Châtelet, a trophy was presented for the first time. In fact, the “Socrates Prize” rewards footballers involved in social and charitable projects. This addition brings the number of Gala du Ballon d’Or awards to seven.
The winner of this great debut was Sadio Mane of Senegal. The Bayern Munich striker was rewarded for his investment in the development of his home village of Bambali in the south of Senegal, where he promoted equal access for boys and girls to football training.
Manchester City was named team of the season
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