Has the Golden Boy award winner ever won the Ballon d’Or?

The star of Real Madrid sensation Jude Bellingham continues to rise, with the Englishman winning Italian newspaper Tuttosport’s Golden Boy award just weeks after he won France Football’s Kopa Trophy. The former crowns the best male player under the age of 21 playing in a European country’s top division, with the latter open to those of the same age worldwide.

Bellingham’s superb start in Madrid

Given the 20-year-old’s excellent performances for Borussia Dortmund and hugely impressive start to life in Spain (13 goals in 14 games, including a double to win El Clásico against Barcelona), it doesn’t come as much of a surprise to see him pick up another gong.

Bellingham joins a list of illustrious (and some less so) names who have been named Golden Boy since the award was first handed out in 2003, with some going on to have stellar careers (Wayne Rooney, Cesc Fabregas, Sergio Agüero) and others unable to hit the heights their early promise suggested (Anderson, Alexandre Pato, Mario Götze).

Cristiano Ronaldo misses out on Golden Boy

One name, of course, stands out like a sore thumb - that of Lionel Messi, who won in 2005, four years before picking up the first of his eight Ballons d’Or. That award has, of course, been dominated by the Argentine and Cristiano Ronaldo in recent times, with the duo winning 13 of the 15 editions held since 2008.

The Golden Boy, by contrast, has never had a repeat winner, yet the Portuguese superstar never won it, with Dutchman Rafael van der Vaart winning the inaugural award, followed by former Manchester United teammate Rooney and then Messi in the years in which Ronaldo would’ve been eligible. Much has been made of the Portugal captain’s transformation from showboater extraordinaire to ruthless game-changer after the 2006 World Cup, which is reflected in the Golden Boy winners list.

Bellingham, Haaland and Mbappé chasing Golden Boy-Ballon d’Or double

With neither Luka Modric nor Karim Benzema, who won the Ballon d’Or in 2018 and 2022 respectively, having picked up the Golden Boy award, Bellingham will hope to become just the second man after Messi to do the double. He is likely to face stiff competition, however, from 2017 winner Kylian Mbappé and Erling Haaland (2020), and maybe even Barcelona duo Pedri (2021) and Gavi (2022).