Ballon d'Or 2021: Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo or Robert Lewandowski - Who deserves the award according to fans?
Cristiano Ronaldo, Robert Lewandowski and Lionel Messi are in the running for the Ballon d'Or this year. The Ballon d'Or award ceremony is set to be held for the first time since 2019, when Lionel Messi won his by the narrowest of margins ahead of Virgil van Dijk.
The annual award ceremony was skipped in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, making the 2021 edition greatly anticipated.
Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo and Robert Lewandowski biggest names on nominee list
The three high-profile candidates for this year's Ballon d'Or are Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo and Robert Lewandowski. According to early reports, Lionel Messi will be handed the award for a record-extending seventh time, with his family and friends already informed of the decision.
Ballon d’Or 2021 🏆
It’s almost time. https://t.co/gq1DQi6qXf
In a bid to find out who fans deem deserving of the award, popular football website Transfermarkt.com organized a poll on Instagram. The poll pitted Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo, and Robert Lewandowski against 27 other nominees.
Through the polls, they created a knockout format for the Ballon d'Or nominees, with Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo receiving byes for the first round. Here are the full details of the Ballon d'Or fan poll, including the draw and winners.
Note: Winners are denoted in Bold
Ballon d'Or poll Round of 32
Bruno Fernandes (Manchester United / Portugal) vs Giorgio Chiellini (Juventus / Italy
Winner: Bruno Fernandes.
Karim Benzema (Real Madrid / France) vs Nicolo Barella (Inter Milan / Italy).
Winner: Karim Benzema.
Kevin De Bruyne (Manchester City / Belgium) vs Cesar Azpilicueta (Chelsea / Spain).
Winner: Kevin De Bruyne.
Gianluigi Donnarumma (PSG / Italy) vs Ruben Dias (Manchester City / Portugal)
Winner: Gianluigi Donnarumma.
Erling Haaland (Borussia Dortmund / Norway) vs Phil Foden (Manchester City / England).
Winner: Erling Haaland.
Harry Kane (Tottenham Hotspur / England) vs Jorginho (Chelsea / Italy).
Winner: Harry Kane.
The Ballon d’Or race is almost over 🏆
Pick your winner 👇 https://t.co/ei377VaKzm
Mohamed Salah (Liverpool / Egypt) vs Leonardo Bonucci (Juventus / Italy).
Winner: Mohamed Salah.
Robert Lewandowski (Bayern Munich / Poland) vs Riyad Mahrez (Manchester City / Algeria).
Winner: Robert Lewandowski.
Romelu Lukaku (Chelsea / Belgium) vs Luka Modric (Real Madrid / Croatia).
Winner: Romelu Lukaku.
Kylian Mbappe (PSG / France) vs Lautaro Martinez (Inter Milan / Argentina).
Winner: Kylian Mbappe.
Pedri (FC Barcelona & Spain) vs Raheem Sterling (Manchester City / England).
Winner: Pedri.
N'Golo Kante (Chelsea / France) vs Gerard Moreno (Villarreal / Spain).
Winner: N'Golo Kante.
Neymar (PSG / Brazil) vs Mason Mount (Chelsea / England).
Winner: Neymar.
Luis Suarez (Atletico Madrid / Uruguay) vs Simon Kjaer (AC Milan / Denmark).
Winner: Luis Suarez.
Ballon d'Or poll Round of 16
Lionel Messi vs Bruno Fernandes.
Karim Benzema vs Kevin De Bruyne.
Erling Haaland vs Gianluigi Donnarumma.
Mohamed Salah vs Harry Kane.
Robert Lewandowski vs Romelu Lukaku.
Pedri vs Kylian Mbappe.
N'Golo Kante vs Neymar.
Cristiano Ronaldo vs Luis Suarez.
Ballon d'Or poll quarter-finals
Mohamed Salah vs Erling Haaland.
Robert Lewandowski vs Kylian Mbappe.
Cristiano Ronaldo vs N'Golo Kante.
Lionel Messi vs Karim Benzema.