2 weeks Ago By Simon Borg
Last year, Lionel Messi beat the very strong claims of Erling Haaland into second place to win a record-extending Ballon d'Or. Now Manchester City finally have a Ballon d'Or winner after Spain midfield totem beat Real Madrid duo Vinicius Junior and Jude Bellingham into second and third place respectively. Madrid's reaction, from boycotting the ceremony after news of Rodri's success leaked earlier in the day, to a flurry of self-righteous social media solidarity afterwards was quite remarkable.
Eduardo Camavinga decried "football politics" after the outcome of a voting process that denied his team-mates. Was it merely a popularity contest among media members spread around the world? Did all those media members deserve to have a vote? What criteria were they using when selecting players for their ballots? Was it all an agenda against the club whose players have lifted the prize on 12 separate occasions? French publication France Football, the original creators and organizers of the annual award, revisited the entire process from nomination after Messi's controversial win over Robert Lewandowski in 2021 and made some changes from 2022 onwards to ensure the honor remains merit-based (despite what the Real Madrid are strongly implying). Here, The Sporting News run down the changes made and how the global voting operates today.
MORE When is the 2022 Ballon d'Or? Time, TV and live stream details Who runs the Ballon d'Or award? In 1956, the head of France Football, Gabriel Hanot, created the award as a way to recognize European players who plied their trade on the continent. It took nearly 40 years until 1995 before the award was opened up to also include non-Europeans who featured for clubs in European countries. And finally in 2007 they opened the award to any player around the world who deserved consideration for the title of best player on the planet.
France Football has slowly evolved the award over time, and the changes they instituted after the heated debate in 2021 are merely the latest. MORE: The final voting totals of the controversial 2021 Ballon d'Or award Who votes for the award? One of the changes made by France Football ahead of the 2022 award concerned the pool of voters. In the past, a media member from each of more than 180 nations was identified to receive a ballot as a way of truly making the Ballon d'Or a global award.
They were tasked with picking their top five for the men's award, for example, and then those votes were tabulated by France Football to determine the final ranking. Beginning with the 2022 edition, France Football decided to restrict the field of nations that had a media member with a ballot. The organizers reduced that list to the top 100 countries from the FIFA men's world ranking (for the men's award), and the top 50 countries from the women's world ranking (for the women's award).
The intention was to ensure that only countries with an established football culture, where there was regular access and coverage of major leagues and competitions around the world, received a voice for the prestigious award. What criteria are used to vote on players? The media members receive a list of the finalists to choose from and make their selections from that select group of candidates. In the past a player's overall career performance was taken into account by the voters.
That allowed for a player like Messi to win in 2021 despite having inferior numbers to Lewandowski. The body of work throughout Messi's career helped him stand above even Lewandowski. Recognizing this flaw in the criteria, France Football made changes, asking voters to take into account the following three aspects for every player: The stricter parameters should ensure the player who performs at an elite level and helps their team win silverware will earn the recognition they deserve more often than not.
MORE: The Real Madrid players who have won the Ballon d'Or in history Is the list of voters made public? France Football has historically published each ballot on the weekend following the ceremony. The ballots are completely transparent with the name of each media member, their outlet, and the players they voted for in the specific order they ranked them. Given the adjustments made to the criteria, it should prove more difficult for a player to win the award without the numbers and achievements backing them up.
How are the finalists selected? The panel of international journalists come up with the 30 finalists for the men's Ballon d'Or and the Yashin Award shortlist for the world's best goalkeeper. Also, a group of 50 international women's soccer journalists pick the women's Ballon d'Or. Lastly, a panel of 32 former Ballon d'Or winners nominate the 10 Kopa Trophy finalists (under-21 players).
The reduction in the number of jurors is anticipated to bring more objectivity, with a focus on individual excellence and who is most deserving of being the overall winner of the Ballon d'Or. Madrid's voluble protests over Rodri's win and Messi's disputed triumph in 2023 see the new system already under strain..
