Lionel Messi, Megan Rapinoe expected to take Ballon d’Or Honours

One of the prestigious ceremonies in the world of football, Ballon d’Or will happen in Paris on December 2, where Lionel Messi and USA women’s World Cup superstar Megan Rapinoe are expected to receive the honors. The much-awaited ceremony for the football fans will be held at the Chatelet Theatre, Paris. 

30 nominations for Ballon d’Or nominees

There are a total of 30 nominations for the Ballon d’Or, greatest football player of the year award. The ceremony will be organised by France Football magazine, where the nominations were decided after 180 journalists cast their votes. The experts feel that Rapinoe deserves the award for the best female player for the year for her spectacular performance on and off the field for the United States. In the men’s category, there is still some suspense about who will depart with the prize, 12 months after Croatia’s Luka Modric claimed the crown for his performance in the Champions League against Real Madrid and also for his contribution in the FIFA World Cup. 

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Luka Modric receiving the last Ballon d’Or marked the end of the decade where Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo had bagged the prize five times each. This time again, all eyes are on Messi for claiming the award for the sixth time. However, Ronaldo is also among the nominated players along with several of the stars of Liverpool, who won the Champions League among them is the potential Dutch defender Virgil van Dijk, who top-scored in the La Liga last season with 36 goals. Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp said “If you give the Ballon d’Or to the best player of this generation then you should give it always to Lionel Messi. That’s how it is.” He further added, “But if you give it to the best player of last season, then it was Virgil van Dijk. I don't know exactly how it will work but that is how I see it."

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