FOOTBALL – He will not defend his title. Argentinian Lionel Messi is not in the list of 30 nominees for the 2024 Ballon d’Or, revealed this Wednesday, September 4 on the sports newspaper’s website The Team. The harvest, on the other hand, gives pride of place to players from Spain, winners of Euro 2024, and Real Madrid, crowned champions of the Champions League.
This is the second time since 2005 that Messi, who won for the 8th time last year, has been ruled out of the running for the most prestigious individual prize in the world of football, which will be awarded after a vote by a jury of journalists representing the top 100 nations in the Fifa rankings. The former FC Barcelona legend, who now plays for Inter Miami, had already been rejected in 2022.
Messi did, however, lift a second Copa America this year with Argentina (after 2021) but the 37-year-old Albiceleste captain had less impact on his team’s success than in the past, even leaving the final in the 66th minute after an ankle injury.
Cristiano Ronaldo forgotten
The other big names in world football are, however, present. Brazilian striker Vinicius, who is the big favourite after Real Madrid’s 15th victory in the Champions League, is there along with his two teammates Jude Bellingham and Kylian Mbappé.
Erling Haaland, English champion with Manchester City, and English striker Harry Kane, unfortunate finalist of Euro-2024, have not been forgotten, unlike Cristiano Ronaldo, exiled since 2023 in Saudi Arabia (Al-Nassr).
The list also includes a large number of European champions wearing the Roja jersey (Dani Carvajal, Alejandro Grimaldo, Dani Olmo, Rodri, Nico Williams, Lamine Yamal). On the French side, defender William Saliba, who performed very well at the Euro, is the only one to accompany Mbappé.
In the women’s category, Spain’s Aitana Bonmati will attempt the double while her FC Barcelona teammate Alexia Putellas (FC Barcelona) hopes to make it three after 2021 and 2022.
The list of players who are in contention for the 2024 Ballon d’Or:
Jude Bellingham : Angleterre, 21 ans, Real Madrid
Hakan Calhanoglu : Turkey, 30 chances, Inter Milan
Dani Carvajal: Spain, 32, Real Madrid
Ruben Dias : Portugal, 27 ans, Manchester City
Artem Dovbik: Ukraine, 27 years old, SK Dnipro-1/Girona/AS Roma
Phil Foden: English, 24, Manchester City
Alejandro Grimaldo: Spain, 28 years old, Bayer Leverkusen
Erling Haaland: Norway, 24 years old, Manchester City
Mats Hummels: Germany, 35, Borussia Dortmund
Harry Kane: English, 31, Bayern Munich
Toni Kroos: Germany, 34, Real Madrid/retired
Ademola Lookman: Nigeria, 26 years old, Atalanta Bergame
Emiliano Martinez : Argentine, 32 ans, Aston Villa
Lautaro Martinez: Argentina, 27, Inter Milan
Kylian Mbappé: France, 25 years old, PSG/Real Madrid
Martin Ödegaard : Norway, 25 years, Arsenal
Dani Olmo : Spain, 26 years, RB Leipzig/FC Barcelona
Cole Palmer: English, 22, Manchester City/Chelsea
Declan Rice: English, 25, Arsenal
Rodri: Spain, 28, Manchester City
Antonio Rüdiger: Germany, 31, Real Madrid
Bukayo Saka: English, 22, Arsenal
William Saliba : France, 23 ans, Arsenal
Federico Valverde : Uruguay, 26 ans, Real Madrid
Vinicius Jr: Brazil, 24, Real Madrid
Vitinha: Portugal, 24 years old, PSG
Nico Williams : Espagne, 22 ans, Athletic Bilbao
Florian Wirtz : Germany, 21 years, Bayer Leverkusen
Granit Xhaka : Suisse, 31 ans, Bayer Leverkusen
Lamine Yamal: Spain, 17 years old, FC Barcelona
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