FIFA Ballon d'Or ceremony in Zurich tonight

The third edition of the FIFA Ballon d’Or awards will be held at the Zurich Kongresshaus in Switzerland tonight. And it could be another big evening for Argentinian maestro Lionel Messi, who could become the first player to win four successive Ballon d’Or awards.The 25 year old FC Barcelona midfielder is an overwhelming favourite to finish ahead of team mate Andrés Iniesta and Real Madrid striker Cristiano Ronaldo, though in recent weeks Ronaldo has said that he would love to once more win the coveted award.

For Lionel Messi, 2012 was an exceptional year. Though he did not win the UEFA Champions League or the Spanish La Liga title with his club, he broke Gerd Müller’s 40 year old record of 85 goals in a calendar year by scoring 91 goals for Barca and Argentina.

Speaking about tonight’s awards, a humble Messi said, “If Iniesta wins, it will be well-deserved for all that he has done, for the way he plays. Again, it will also be a prize for the dressing room.”

While Cristiano Ronaldo said ahead of the awards night, “If I win, perfect. If I don’t, never mind, life goes on. But obviously I’d love to win. I’m not going to lie or be hypocritical.”

“Fair or unfair, the decision will be what it will be… I’ll maybe be very happy or maybe very sad. But that’s life. I can’t live according to an individual prize,” Ronaldo added.

For the FIFA Ballon d’Or awards, FIFA had joined hands with France Football in 2010 after the Ballon d’Or award was earlier handed out by the French magazine, while FIFA had their own World Player of the Year award.