Top 5 Biggest Ballon d’Or Robberies After 2024 Nominees Announcement
- Since its inception in 1956, the Ballon d'Or award has become the most prestigious award in football
- The legendary status of footballers has been cemented thanks to the award, but it has been rocked with controversies
- Players like Robert Lewandowski, who deserved to win, were overlooked, eliciting outrage from fans and pundits over the years
The 2024 Ballon d'Or nominees have been announced, with Jude Bellingham, Vinicius Junior, and Rodri the front runners for the award.
It was the first time in 20 years that neither Lionel Messi nor Cristiano Ronaldo were nominated.
In Ballon d'Or history, some questionable winners have taken the award over some players who deserved it.
Source: UGC
Messi and Ronaldo dominated the award for years thanks to their unprecedented performances in La Liga.
The Argentine won probably his last award in 2023, his eighth while Ronaldo last won it in 2017, his fifth award, per ESPN.
Some players deserved to win the award but were denied. Some of those outcomes continue to cause outrage among football fans. Here are the top five players who were robbed.
Ballon d'Or robberies
5. Virgil van Dijk - 2019
It is rare to see a defender winning the Ballon d'Or. In 2019, Liverpool's Virgil van Dijk should've won it in 2019. Fabio Cannavaro was the last defender to win the award. The towering Dutch centre-back was undoubtedly the best footballer in the world in 2019. He helped Liverpool win the Champions League and later won the Premier League with the Reds.
However, Messi controversially won the award. The Argentine won La Liga but was eliminated from the Champions League by Liverpool, who erased a 3-0 first-leg deficit in the semi-final.
4. Frank Ribery - 2013
Ribery and Bayern Munich won the treble in 2013 under Jupp Heynckes after a painful 2012, when they lost the Champions League final to Chelsea. The Frenchman scored fewer goals than Messi and Ronaldo, but he was highly influential at Bayern, which broke many records that season. Ronaldo won his second award despite losing the La Liga title.
3. Wesley Sneijder - 2020
Marco van Basten (1992) was the last Dutchman to win the Ballon d'Or, but Sneijder should have ended the drought in 2010. That year, he won the treble with Inter Milan and narrowly lost the World Cup final to Spain. Interestingly, Luka Modric lost the World Cup final and won the award.
Messi won the award, while Andres Iniesta and Xavi were second and third, respectively. Sneijder beat all three of them to win the Champions League, and fans believe it was a travesty for awarding M<essi over the Dutch playmaker.
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2. Thierry henry - 2003 & 2004
Henry was the best player in the Premier League, perhaps the world, in the early 2000s. He scored plenty of goals and assists, but the Ballon d'Or never came his way. In the 2002/03 season, he cracked at least 20 goals and assists in the Premier League, a mark that no player has matched.
In the following season, he helped Arsene Wenger's side produce an invincible league season. However, the 2003 and 2004 awards controversially went to Pavel Nedved and Andriy Shevchenko, per Four Four Two. The two stars won the Serie A but didn't taste Champions League glory.
1. Robert Lewandowski - 2020 & 2021
The Polish striker was at the peak of his powers in 2020 and 2021, scoring goals for fun and breaking records at Bayern Munich. In the 2019/20 season, the striker bagged 55 goals and won the Bundesliga, DFB-Pokal, and Champions League treble. However, the 2020 ceremony was cancelled due to COVID-19, robbing him of that award.
He had another phenomenal 2021, but the award controversially went to Messi, who only won a Copa del Rey title with Barcelona. The Argentine's 2023 award was highly contentious.
2024 Ballon d'Or omisioons
Legit.ng earlier reported that several big names were missing in the 2024 nominees list.
Real Madrid's Rodrygo, Liverpool's Mohamed Salah, Al-Nassr's Cristiano Ronaldo, and Inter Miami's Lionel Messi were not nominated.
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Source: TUKO.co.ke
