World Cup MVPs year by year: Every winner of the men’s Golden Ball

If the history of the men’s Golden Ball award tells us anything, it’s that the best team at a World Cup doesn’t necessarily provide the best player. That, at least, seems to have been the conclusion repeatedly drawn by the people who choose the accolade’s winner.

How is the World Cup Golden Ball winner chosen?

Presented to the individual deemed the outstanding performer at a World Cup, the Golden Ball has, in the past, been awarded by a combination of a FIFA panel and members of the media. At present, however, it appears to be chosen solely by the global governing body’s ‘technical study group’ (TSG).

For the 2026 tournament, this 13-person committee of experts includes former Arsenal manager Arsène Wenger, now FIFA’s chief of global football development; the World Cup winners Jürgen Klinsmann, Gilberto Silva and Tobin Heath; and the ex-Switzerland goalkeeper Pascal Zuberbühler, who heads up the panel.

When was the World Cup Golden Ball first awarded?

Although FIFA held the inaugural edition of the men’s World Cup in 1930, the Golden Ball was not introduced until several decades later. It was first awarded to Argentina’s Mario Kempes in 1978, after the striker’s goalscoring exploits on home soil fired the Albiceleste to their maiden global title. Kempes’ six goals also earned him the Golden Boot, as the tournament’s top scorer.

In 1982 and 1986, the Golden Ball likewise went to players who inspired their country to a World Cup triumph: Italy’s Paolo Rossi and Argentina’s Diego Maradona, respectively. But in the nine men’s tournaments that have followed, only two players have won the World Cup and received the Golden Ball at the same time: Brazil’s Romário in 1994, and Argentina’s Lionel Messi in 2022.

Among the Golden Ball recipients who missed out on lifting the World Cup itself, moreover, two did not even contest that year’s final. In 1990, Salvatore Schillaci was rewarded for his six-goal haul for hosts Italy, who finished third; and in 2010, Uruguay’s five-goal Diego Forlán - who netted multiple stunners - picked up the Golden Ball after a fourth-placed finish. Schillaci also became the second Italian to claim Golden Boot honors, after Rossi in ‘82.

The only goalkeeper to have collected the Golden Ball is Oliver Kahn - another player who did not actually win the World Cup. After registering five clean sheets in seven games, the Germany captain was named 2002’s star performer, his generally heroic level of play overriding an uncharacteristic, if costly, error against Brazil in the final.

Golden Ball recipients - the full list (World Cup winners in bold):

• 1978: Mario Kempes, Argentina*
• 1982: Paolo Rossi, Italy*
• 1986: Diego Maradona, Argentina
• 1990: Salvatore Schillaci, Italy*
• 1994: Romário, Brazil
• 1998: Ronaldo Nazário, Brazil
• 2002: Oliver Kahn, Germany
• 2006: Zinedine Zidane, France
• 2010: Diego Forlán, Uruguay
• 2014: Lionel Messi, Argentina
• 2018: Luka Modric, Croatia
• 2022: Lionel Messi, Argentina

*Also won the Golden Boot

The only multiple Golden Ball winner

Only one player, Messi, has won the Golden Ball more than once. In 2022, the veteran was the unsurprising choice, after skippering Argentina to their third global crown - and racking up seven goals in the process. Eight years earlier, though, Messi was a more controversial selection, having seriously underwhelmed in the Argentinians’ final defeat to Germany in Brazil.

Indeed, Messi’s 2014 Golden Ball win attracted such widespread criticism that Gérard Houllier, a member of that year’s TSG, felt compelled to publicly justify the panel’s decision to give the forward the award.

Speaking to Le Monde, the former Liverpool and France coach said: “I understand that it may have surprised people, because not everyone remembers more than Lionel Messi’s second half in the final. We, on the committee, watch all the matches, and we believe he was the most important player for his team. He reached the final, which is one of the criteria for awarding the trophy.

“Moreover, Messi was more than decisive in the first four matches. In the semi-final against the Netherlands, he scored his penalty [in the shootout] as the first taker. The analysis also takes into account the fact that he was captain of a united team - a side that played well together, something we had not seen for a long time in Argentina. He was more than decisive in this collective and in building it. In my opinion, he fully deserves this Golden Ball, since he carried his team all the way to the final.”

Whether he merited his 2014 award or not, Messi’s official photo with the Golden Ball - in which he cannot summon even a hint of smile - stands as a memorable example of one of the more bizarre images that soccer throws up: that of the crestfallen player posing with an individual gong after their team has suffered a devastating defeat.

Croatia’s Luka Modric, who picked up the Golden Ball after losing the 2018 final to France, provided another such snap:

Who will win the 2026 Golden Ball? The betting favorites:

• Harry Kane, England: +700
• Lamine Yamal, Spain: +800
• Kylian Mbappé, France: +1000
• Lionel Messi, Argentina: +1000
• Michael Olise, France: +1000

Source: Oddschecker

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