The Ballon D’Or returns tonight, with the greatest footballer in the world set to receive an accolade to honour his talents.
The award is one of football’s most respected individual accolades. However, last year, there was no winner. The reason for this was the disruption to the football calendar caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
In 2019, Lionel Messi claimed his sixth Ballon d’Or, and the Paris Saint-Germain forward is among the favourites to be crowned yet again.
Among the other contenders are Bayern Munich’s Robert Lewandowski and Liverpool’s Mohamed Salah. As is Chelsea midfielder Jorginho, after his scintillating displays for the Blues helped them clinch the Champions League. The midfielder followed up that success with a crucial part in Italy’s Euro 2020 triumph.
When will the ceremony take place?
The winner will be crowned at Théâtre du Châtelet in Paris, with the ceremony starting at 7:30 pm tonight.
Where Can I watch the Ballon D’Or Ceremony?
L’Equipe will be streaming the ceremony live on their YouTube channel from 7:30pm.
Additionally, Eurosport will also have a stream available via their website and app.
The Ballon d’Or 2021 shortlist
- Cesar Azpilicueta (Chelsea)
- Nicolo Barella (Inter Milan)
- Karim Benzema (Real Madrid)
- Leonardo Bonucci (Juventus)
- Kevin De Bruyne (Manchester City)
- Giorgio Chiellini (Juventus)
- Cristiano Ronaldo (Manchester United)
- Ruben Dias (Manchester City)
- Gianluigi Donnarumma (Paris Saint-Germain)
- Bruno Fernandes (Manchester United)
- Phil Foden (Manchester City)
- Erling Haaland (Borussia Dortmund)
- Jorginho (Chelsea)
- Harry Kane (Tottenham)
- N’Golo Kante (Chelsea)
- Simon Kjaer (AC Milan)
- Robert Lewandowski (Bayern Munich)
- Romelu Lukaku (Chelsea)
- Riyad Mahrez (Manchester City)
- Lautaro Martinez (Inter Milan)
- Kylian Mbappe (Paris Saint-Germain)
- Lionel Messi (Paris Saint-Germain)
- Luka Modric (Real Madrid)
- Gerard Moreno (Villarreal)
- Mason Mount (Chelsea)
- Neymar (Paris Saint-Germain)
- Pedri (Barcelona)
- Mohamed Salah (Liverpool)
- Raheem Sterling (Manchester City)
- Luis Suarez (Atletico Madrid)
Are there other awards to be won?
The women’s Ballon d’Or winner will also find a new home, with an astonishing five Chelsea players on the 20-player shortlist. Furthermore, Arsenal goal machine Vivianne Miedema and England striker Ellen White are also in contention.
The Kopa Trophy will be awarded for the best men’s U21 player. And that’s not all – the Yashin Trophy for the best goalkeeper is also up for grabs this evening.
Can any player stop Ronaldo or Messi from picking up another win? Is there another player deserving of the award? Whatever happens, you can be sure that debates will rage in the aftermath of the ceremony. You can form an opinion now or wait to see which direction the angry mob is walking towards before deciding.
Whatever your decision is, you won’t be able to ignore the Ballon d’Or 2021.
Featured image credit: Getty