Cristiano Ronaldo Wins Record-Tying Fifth Ballon D'Or Award
Cristiano Ronaldo has won the 2017 Ballon d'Or, taking home the award for the fourth time in the last five years and matching Lionel Messi's record of winning the prestigious honor for a fifth time.
The Ballon d'Or award, presented by France Football, is given to the world's best soccer player, and either Messi or Ronaldo has won it every year dating back to 2007, when Kaka earned the honors.
The 32-year-old Ronaldo has finished in first or second place in Ballon d'Or voting in each of the last seven years, and excluding 2010 has finished in the top two every year dating back to 2007.
Even as he gets older, Ronaldo has continued to rack up the awards. In October, he was named FIFA's Best Men's Player. In August, he was named UEFA's 2016-17 Best Player in Europe for a third time (the award was instituted in 2010-11). There's still new ground for him to find, evidenced by his latest accomplishment on Wednesday, when he became the first player to score in each of the six group games in the UEFA Champions League.
Debatable Merit of 'The Best' Aside, How Much Longer Can Ronaldo, Messi Reign?
In 2016, Ronaldo was helped by exploits on both the club and country levels, leading Real Madrid to a Champions League title and helping Portugal to the Euro 2016 championship. In 2017, Ronaldo's campaign was largely boost by his efforts with Real Madrid, as the club won La Liga's title in May and then followed that up with a second straight Champions League title–and 11th overall. Ronaldo was a menace in the knockout stage of the competition, scoring 10 goals in four multi-goal games. He netted twice in the final triumph over Juventus and added hat tricks against Bayern Munich and Atletico Madrid in the quarterfinals and semifinals, respectively. He also scored 25 goals in La Liga, helping Real Madrid to a record 33rd title, but its first since 2012.
Ronaldo was still impactful for Portugal, helping the side qualify for the 2018 World Cup by scoring 15 goals in the qualifying round, second only to Poland and Bayern Munich star Robert Lewandowski, who scored 16.
Before crowning Ronaldo, France Football unveiled its 30 finalists in reverse order of how they finished in the voting:
29 (tied). Philippe Coutinho (Liverpool/Brazil) and Dries Mertens (Napoli/Belgium)
28. Edin Dzeko (Roma/Bosnia & Herzegovina)
27. Mats Hummels (Bayern Munich/Germany)
26. Jan Oblak (Atletico Madrid/Slovenia)
25. Karim Benzema (Real Madrid/France)
24. Radamel Falcao (Monaco/Colombia)
23. Sadio Mane (Liverpool/Senegal)
21 (tied). Leonardo Bonucci (Juventus-AC Milan/Italy) and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (Borussia Dortmund/Gabon)
20. David De Gea (Manchester United/Spain)
19. Eden Hazard (Chelsea/Belgium)
18. Antoine Griezmann (Atletico Madrid/France)
17. Toni Kroos (Real Madrid/Germany)
16. Marcelo (Real Madrid/Brazil)
15. Paulo Dybala (Juventus/Argentina)
14. Kevin De Bruyne (Manchester City/Belgium)
13. Luis Suarez (Barcelona/Uruguay)
12. Isco (Real Madrid/Spain)
11. Edinson Cavani (PSG/Uruguay)
10. Harry Kane (Tottenham/England)
9. Robert Lewandowski (Bayern Munich/Poland)
8. N'Golo Kante (Chelsea/France)
7. Kylian Mbappe (Monaco-PSG/France)
6. Sergio Ramos (Real Madrid/Spain)
5. Luka Modric (Real Madrid/Croatia)
4. Gianluigi Buffon (Juventus/Italy)
3. Neymar (Barcelona-PSG/Brazil)
2. Lionel Messi (Barcelona/Argentina)
1. Cristiano Ronaldo (Real Madrid/Portugal)
