The Best FIFA Men's Player
The Best FIFA Men's Player is an association football award presented annually by the sport's governing body, FIFA, to the world's best men's player since 2016.[1] The award was formerly known as the FIFA World Player of the Year, which was merged with France Football's Ballon d'Or in 2010 to become the FIFA Ballon d'Or in a six-year partnership.[2]
| The Best FIFA Men's Player | |
|---|---|
| Presented by | FIFA |
| Formerly called | FIFA World Player of the Year (1991–2009) FIFA Ballon d'Or (2010–2015) |
| First awarded | 2016 |
| Current holder |  Robert Lewandowski(1st award) |
| Most awards |  Lionel Messi(6th awards) |
| Website | fifa.com |
History
In 2010, the FIFA World Player of the Year award combined with the Ballon d'Or to create the FIFA Ballon d'Or in a six-year partnership.[3] FIFA presided over the FIFA Ballon d'Or after agreeing to pay £13million for the merge of the two major player awards with France Football. The six editions of the FIFA Ballon d'Or were dominated by Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo, as part of their ongoing rivalry. In 2016, the Ballon d’Or again lost its ‘FIFA’ tag and would be voted for exclusively by journalists, while the FIFA World Player of the Year award — which ran from 1991 to 2009 — was resurrected, this time as The Best FIFA Men's Player.
According to reports, FIFA’s decision not to renew the deal was made in order to improve the organization’s strained relationship with England’s FA. This was based on the fact the annual ceremony was held in Zürich – and new FIFA president Gianni Infantino wanted to move the next one to London.
The trophy was designed by Croatian artist Ana Barbić Katičić.[4]
Criteria and voting
The selection criteria for the players of the year are sporting performance, as well as general conduct on and off the pitch.
The votes are decided by media representatives, national team coaches, and national team captains. In October 2016, it was announced that the general public would also be allowed to vote. Each group has 25% of the overall vote.[5]
Winners
| Year | Rank | Player | Team | Votes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 1st |  Cristiano Ronaldo |
 Real Madrid |
34.54% |
| 2nd | Lionel Messi |
Barcelona |
26.42% | |
| 3rd |  Antoine Griezmann |
Atlético Madrid |
7.53% | |
| 2017 | 1st | Cristiano Ronaldo |
Real Madrid |
43.16% |
| 2nd | Lionel Messi |
Barcelona |
19.25% | |
| 3rd |  Neymar[note 1] |
Paris Saint-Germain |
6.97% | |
| 2018 | 1st |  Luka Modrić |
Real Madrid |
29.05% |
| 2nd | Cristiano Ronaldo[note 2] |
 Juventus |
19.08% | |
| 3rd |  Mohamed Salah |
 Liverpool |
11.23% | |
| 2019 | 1st | Lionel Messi |
Barcelona |
46 |
| 2nd |  Virgil van Dijk |
Liverpool |
38 | |
| 3rd | Cristiano Ronaldo |
Juventus |
36 | |
| 2020 | 1st | Robert Lewandowski |
 Bayern Munich |
52 |
| 2nd | Cristiano Ronaldo |
Juventus |
38 | |
| 3rd | Lionel Messi |
Barcelona |
35 | |
Wins by player
| Player | Winner | Second place | Third place |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cristiano Ronaldo |
2 (2016, 2017) | 2 (2018, 2020) | 1 (2019) |
| Lionel Messi |
1 (2019) | 2 (2016, 2017) | 1 (2020) |
| Luka Modrić |
1 (2018) | — | — |
| Robert Lewandowski |
1 (2020) | — | — |
Wins by club
| Club | Players | Total |
|---|---|---|
| Real Madrid |
2 | 3 |
| Barcelona |
1 | 1 |
| Bayern Munich |
1 | 1 |
Most FIFA Awards
Player of the Year
| Player | FIFA World Player of the Year |
FIFA Ballon d'Or | The Best FIFA Men's Player |
Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lionel Messi |
1 | 4 | 1 | 6 |
| Cristiano Ronaldo |
1 | 2 | 2 | 5 |
| Ronaldo |
3 | — | — | 3 |
| Zinédine Zidane |
3 | — | — | 3 |
| Ronaldinho |
2 | — | — | 2 |
| Lothar Matthäus |
1 | — | — | 1 |
| Marco van Basten |
1 | — | — | 1 |
| Roberto Baggio |
1 | — | — | 1 |
| Romário |
1 | — | — | 1 |
 George Weah |
1 | — | — | 1 |
| Rivaldo |
1 | — | — | 1 |
| Luís Figo |
1 | — | — | 1 |
| Fabio Cannavaro |
1 | — | — | 1 |
| Kaká |
1 | — | — | 1 |
| Luka Modrić |
— | — | 1 | 1 |
| Robert Lewandowski |
— | — | 1 | 1 |
Notes
- Neymar was signed by Paris Saint-Germain from Barcelona midway through 2017.
- Cristiano Ronaldo was signed by Juventus from Real Madrid midway through 2018.
References
- "The birth of The Best FIFA Football Awards". FIFA.com. Retrieved 24 October 2016.
- "Ballon d'Or and Best FIFA Men's Player awards explained". Sky Sports. 12 December 2016. Retrieved 2 January 2016.
- "When are The Best FIFA Football Awards 2016?". Mirror. 8 January 2017. Retrieved 9 June 2017.
- I. Ra (27 September 2018). "Hrvatica dizajnirala FIFA trofej: "Uvijek ću pamtiti tren kad ga je Luka digao"". Index.hr (in Croatian). Retrieved 16 March 2020.
- "The fans take centre stage". FIFA.com. 31 October 2016. Retrieved 31 October 2016.
External links
FIFA Player of the Year | |
|---|---|
| FIFA World Player of the Year | |
| FIFA Ballon d'Or | |
| The Best FIFA Men's Player | |
| |