Ballon d’Or 2024 ceremony live online: Vinicius Jr, latest updates, winners, nominees
Ballon d'Or 2024: live updates
Barcelona's stars head to Paris
Aitana Bonmatí, the current Ballon d'Or holder, along with Salma Paralluelo and Mariona Caldentey, are already en route to Paris for the gala. They represent Barcelona’s women’s team, joined by two-time Ballon d'Or winner Alexia Putellas and Patri Guijarro.
Real Madrid flight cancelled
Real Madrid had a plane planned to leave Madrid's Barajas airport at 15:00 and our sources say it has not taken off. In total there were 50 people planned to be on on the plane, including the nominees, families and employees of the club.
Real Madrid not heading to Paris
Sounding more and more like Vinicius and Madrid will not be going - Florentino Pérez, Carlo Ancelotti, Jude Bellingham, nor Vinicius himself will attend the gala according to Fabrizio Romano.
Interesting reports coming out...
Reports from France say that Vinicius Jr's entourage think he will NOT win the Ballon d'Or, while others add that the player himself has not travelled to Paris.
Your predictions ahead of the gala
The Ballon d'Or's X account has posted a template for fans to select their predicted winners for each award.
Who do you think will take home the various Ballons d'Or? (Yes, apparently the plural of Ballon d'Or is Ballons d'Or, a bit like the plural of attorney general being attorneys general, because the dOr and the general are just describing the ballons or the generals, which are the bit in actual plural).
Have you heard of the Super Ballon d'Or?
Yes, this is a real award that has only been given out once in the history of football.
It was awarded to former Real Madrid player Alfredo Di Stéfano in 1989 for being the best player across three decades.
Since Di Stéfano was awarded the super trophy, no other player has been given the honour, making it arguably the most exclusive prize ever to be given out in football history.
He also won 2 of the 'normal' Ballon d'Ors, in 1957 and 1959.
Di Stéfano beat both Johan Cruyff (2nd) and Michel Platini (3rd) in the vote.
Vinicius vs Rodri
Rodri is perhaps Vini Jr's biggest challenger to the Ballon d'Or trophy today.
The Spanish midfielder has been the key figure in Manchester City's dominance in England and their run to becoming European champions two seasons ago.
Currently injured, Rodri's win record with City is astonishing, and his presence is always missed when he is not in Pep Guardiola's XI. Last season, he won the Euros with Spain, the Premier League, the Club World Cup and the UEFA Super Cup.
As for Vini Jr, he managed to add a LaLiga trophy and a Champions League to his trophy cabinet, scoring 26 goals on the way, bagging a goal every 146 minutes on the pitch.
Vini could give Real Madrid Ballon d'Or Clásico advantage
Vinicius Jr. is the favorite to win the Ballon d'Or tonight in Paris, and if he does, the Brazilian star will swing the historic rivalry with Barcelona in Real Madrid’s favor when it comes to this prestigious award.
Barcelona currently leads the tally with Messi's six wins in a Barcelona shirt, followed by Cruyff (2), Luis Suárez, Stoichkov, Rivaldo, and Ronaldinho. That makes 12 total wins for Barcelona, with 12 second-place finishes giving them the edge.
Real Madrid, on the other hand, has tallied wins from Ronaldo (4), Di Stéfano (2), and one each from Kopa, Figo, Ronaldo, Cannavaro, Modric, and Karim Benzema.
Today's ceremony will be the 68th edition of the awards and as well as a shiny trophy, there's also a lot of money involved with the Ball d'Or ceremony, but it doesn't come from where you might think.
Paul has dived into just how much money the winner earns, and where exactly they get it from.
Messi vs Ronaldo: a battle for the ages
We've started this list since 2008 which was when Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi began their domination of the world stage, bringing with it a battle that took the meaning of the 'best player in the world' to new heights.
If you're like me, then you expect the Ballon d'Or winner to have scored 50 goals and got 50 assists all while saving the world in a cape and with their pants on the outside of their trousers.
However, football these days doesn't have a star (yet) that has put up the numbers that these two freaks of nature did for over a decade. It might happen in the future, but right now we're not close.
Anyway, here's how that sensational battle played out:
2008 - Cristiano Ronaldo - Manchester United (1)
2009 - Lionel Messi - Barcelona (1)
2010 - Lionel Messi - Barcelona (2)
2011 - Lionel Messi - Barcelona (3)
2012 - Lionel Messi - Barcelona (4)
2013 - Cristiano Ronaldo - Real Madrid (2)
2014 - Cristiano Ronaldo - Real Madrid (3)
2015 - Lionel Messi - Barcelona (5)
2016 - Cristiano Ronaldo - Real Madrid (4)
2017 - Cristiano Ronaldo - Real Madrid (5)
2018 - Luka Modric - Real Madrid (1)
2019 - Lionel Messi - Barcelona (6)
2020 - Not awarded due to COVID-19
2021 - Lionel Messi - Paris-Saint Germain (7)
2022 - Karim Benzema - Real Madrid (1)
2023 - Lionel Messi - Inter Miami (8)
Who votes? In case you were wondering
- The men's and women's Ballon d'Or is voted by 'an international jury' of journalists, with one representative per country.
- The Kopa Trophy is decided by ex-Ballon d'Or winners.
- A group a journalists will vote for the Yachine Trophy, as is the case with both the Club of the Season and Coach of the Year awards.
What time do things get going?
The iconic Theatre du Chatelet in Paris will be the venue for the award ceremony on 28 October with the event set to start at 3:45 pm (ET)/ 8:45 pm (local time in Paris).
Perhaps surprisingly, the USMNT and Milan player failed to make the shortlist for Men's Player of the Year.
He joins the likes of Mo Salah, Luka Modric, Rodrygo, Jamal Musiala, Angel DiMaria, and Virgil VanDijk on the list of players who got left out, to the rage of some loyal fans.
A throwback to the last time a Real Madrid player won
Karim Benzema, who now plies his trade in Saudi Arabia, was the last Real Madrid player to be named as the best men's player in world football.
Andrew Hancock/ISI Photos / Getty Images
USWNT stars nominated
A total of five USWNT stars have made the Ballon d'OR shortlist of 28 players this year.
They include Lindsey Horan (Lyon), Trinity Rodman (Washington Spirit), Mallory Swanson and Alyssa Naeher (Chicago Red Stars), Sophia Smith (Portland Thorns).
All of these players have had stellar seasons for both club and country and have grown hugely under the direction of Emma Hayes with the national team.
How is the Ballon d'Or made?
The famous trophy includes a pyrite base and the overall structure measures 31 cm in height and 23 cm in diameter, and weighs just over 7 kg.
The trophy is made with two brass plates that are soldered together to create the shape of a ball before then being filled with a wax-like material and bathed in gold on the outside.
While the numbers are kept secret, it is widely reported to be worth somewhere in the region of $3,000.
Juan Herrero / EFE
Who is the favourite for the women's award?
Barcelona's Aitana Bonmatí is the favourite for many when it comes to the award this year.
The Spaniard would be looking to win her second consecutive Ballon d'Or after picking up the trophy last time out. However, this time things might not be so easy: she has teammate Caroline Graham Hansen, a regularly overlooked player, hot on her heels for what would be a fully deserved recognition of her insane talent.
Who is nominated for the women's award?
· Barbra Banda (Zambia, Shanghai RCB / Orlando Pride)
· Aitana Bonmatí (Spain, Barcelona)
· Lucy Bronze (England, Barcelona / Chelsea)
· Mariona Caldentey (Spain, Barcelona / Arsenal)
· Tabitha Chawinga (Malawi, Paris Saint-Germain / Lyon)
· Grace Geyoro (France, Paris Saint-Germain)
· Manuela Giugliano (Italy, Roma)
· Caroline Graham Hansen (Norway, Barcelona)
· Patricia Guijarro (Spain, Barcelona)
· Giulia Gwinn (Germany, Bayern München)
· Yui Hasegawa (Japan, Manchester City)
· Ada Hegerberg (Norway, Lyon)
· Lauren Hemp (England, Manchester City)
· Lindsey Horan (USA, Lyon)
· Lauren James (England, Chelsea)
· Marie-Antoinette Katoto (France, Paris Saint-Germain)
· Alyssa Naeher (USA, Chicago Red Stars)
· Sjoeke Nüsken (Germany, Chelsea)
· Ewa Pajor (Poland, Wolfsburg / Barcelona)
· Salma Paralluelo (Spain, Barcelona)
· Gabi Portilho (Brazil, Corinthians)
· Alexia Putellas (Spain, Barcelona)
· Mayra Ramírez (Colombia, Levante / Chelsea)
· Trinity Rodman (USA, Washington Spirit)
· Lea Schüller (Germany, Bayern München)
· Khadija Shaw (Jamaica, Manchester City)
· Sophia Smith (USA, Portland Thorns)
· Mallory Swanson (USA, Chicago Red Stars)
· Tarciane (Brazil, Corinthians / Houston Dash)
· Glódís Viggósdóttir (Iceland, Bayern München)
JESUS ALVAREZ ORIHUELA / DIARIO AS
Who is the favourite for the men's award?
Real Madrid winger Vinicius Júnior is the favourite to win the prize and the title of best men's player in the world.
The Brazilian played 49 games for club and country in 2023/24, scoring 26 goals and providing 11 assists.
As well as those numbers, he was a constant menace for right backs across the world, with his pace, power and much improved finishing causing havoc for defences that he tore up throughout the campaign.
Who is nominated for the men's Ballon d'Or?
Here's the full list of nominees for the 2024 Ballon d'Or:
· Jude Bellingham (England, Real Madrid)
· Hakan Çalhanoğlu (Türkiye, Inter)
· Dani Carvajal (Spain, Real Madrid)
· Rúben Dias (Portugal, Manchester City)
· Artem Dovbyk (Ukraine, Dnipro / Girona / Roma)
· Phil Foden (England, Manchester City)
· Alejandro Grimaldo (Spain, Bayer Leverkusen)
· Erling Haaland (Norway, Manchester City)
· Mats Hummels (Germany, Borussia Dortmund)
· Harry Kane (England, Bayern München)
· Toni Kroos (Germany, Real Madrid)
· Ademola Lookman (Nigeria, Atalanta)
· Emiliano Martínez (Argentina, Aston Villa)
· Lautaro Martínez (Argentina, Inter)
· Kylian Mbappé (France, Paris Saint-Germain / Real Madrid)
· Martin Ødegaard (Norway, Arsenal)
· Dani Olmo (Spain, Leipzig / Barcelona)
· Cole Palmer (England, Manchester City / Chelsea)
· Declan Rice (England, Arsenal)
· Rodri (Spain, Manchester City)
· Antonio Rüdiger (Germany, Real Madrid)
· Bukayo Saka (England, Arsenal)
· William Saliba (France, Arsenal)
· Federico Valverde (Uruguay, Real Madrid)
· Vinícius Júnior (Brazil, Real Madrid)
· Vitinha (Portugal, Paris Saint-Germain)
· Nico Williams (Spain, Athletic Club)
· Florian Wirtz (Germany, Bayer Leverkusen)
· Granit Xhaka (Switzerland, Bayer Leverkusen)
· Lamine Yamal (Spain, Barcelona)
Welcome!
Hello and welcome to the AS USA live feed for the 2024 Ballon d'Or.
Today, we're going to definitively find out who is the world's best player over the past year.
The ceremony is set to start at 3:45 pm (ET)/ 8:45 pm (local time in Paris).
However, we've got a full docket of pre-ceremony action for you to consume right here.