5 biggest snubs in Ballon d'Or history
The Ballon d'Or is an annual award bestowed by France Football to the best player for club and country.
First introduced in 1956, 25 different players from twenty different countries have won the Ballon d'Or over the years. Initially open only to players plying their trade in Europe, any player in the world is now eligible to win the award.
There has been criticism that the Ballon d'Or award has largely favoured attackers. In fact, only two defenders and one goalkeeper have ever landed the prestigious award. The selection criteria has also been questioned, as there haven't always been unanimous Ballon d'Or winners over the years.
Essentially, it's an award for the best player in a calendar year for club and country. It's an icing on the cake if the player also plays a key role in helping his team win or make a deep run at a major tournament. This includes the league, Champions League, FIFA World Cup, and other continental international competitions.
However, a few Ballon d'Or winners, over the years, haven't always ticked both boxes. On that note, here's a look at the five biggest Ballon d'Or snubs over the years:
#5 Wesley Sneijder - 2010 (didn't even make the Ballon d'Or podium)
Wesley Sneijder was a top midfielder during his playing days. He hit the ground running on his arrival at Inter Milan in the summer of 2009.
The elegant Dutchman played a key role in the Nerazzurri becoming the first Italian team to win the continental treble in 2009-10. Sneijder bagged eight goals and 16 assists across competitions, pulling the strings from midfield.
That summer, he also scored five goals, including a brace in the 2-1 win over Brazil, as the Netherlands booked a date with Spain for the FIFA World Cup title. Four of his five strikes and an assist came in the knockout rounds.
The Dutchman received four Man of the Match awards in the tournament. Sneijder was one of the Oranje's standout performers in the final, but Spain had the last laugh in the final.
Nevertheless, his exploits for club and country should have made Sneijder an unanimous choice for the Ballon d'Or award that year. Instead, the Dutchman didn't even make the podium. Lionel Messi surprisingly took home the Ballon d'Or award ahead of his World Cup-winning teammates Andres Iniesta and Xavi.
Wesley Sneijder did it all in 2010, but still finished FOURTH in Ballon d'Or voting 😳 https://t.co/81zhBm7PBN
Eight years later, Luka Modric, who won the Champions League and was also the FIFA World Cup finalist that year, won the Ballon d'Or. That makes Sneijder's snub all the more baffling.
#4 Cristiano Ronaldo - 2018 (Ballon d'Or runner-up)
Cristiano Ronaldo enjoyed a goal-rich 2017-18 campaign for Real Madrid, scoring 44 goals across competitions.
In what turned out to be his last season at the La Liga giants, Ronaldo had a modest league campaign. He scored 'only' 26 goals as Madrid failed to defend their La Liga title. However, in the Champions League, Ronaldo was at his imperious best.
The then 33-year-old amassed 15 goals, scoring in all six group games and both legs of the Round of 16 and quarter-finals. Although Ronaldo didn't score in his next three games, he played a huge role in Real Madrid doing an unprecedented three-peat in the Champions League.
Ronaldo moved to Juventus that summer and had a decent start to his campaign, winning the Serie A title later that season. He also scored a dazzling hat-trick against Spain at the FIFA World Cup, but Portugal were eliminated in the Round of 16.
However, the Ballon d'Or award that year went to Ronaldo's former Real Madrid teammate Luka Modric. Modric won the Champions League with Madrid before taking Croatia to the World Cup final.
However, Modric wasn't a unanimous choice for the award among fans and experts, as he didn't single-handedly impact games to the extent Ronaldo did.
👏👏👏 The 2018 Ballon d'Or is Luka Modric (@lukamodric10)! #ballondor https://t.co/2W0JGJpisn
Lionel Messi would also have been a more deserving Ballon d'Or winner than Modric that year. He scored over 50 goals for club and country, won the league and the Pichichi awards. Raphael Varane, who won the Champions League with Real Madrid and the World Cup with France that year, was also viewed as a more deserving candidate.
Interestingly, both Ronaldo and Messi, who have won ten Ballon d'Ors between themselves since 2008, snubbed the 2018 ceremony. Ronaldo finished second that year, while Messi didn't even make the podium.