Portugal’s captain Cristiano Ronaldo has stated that the Ballon d’Or award, which was given to the best player in Europe and the world, has lost its value.
Ronaldo, 40 years old, is the second-most awarded player for this honor. He has won the award a total of five times. However, Ronaldo’s criticism of the award came after his name was not included in the list of 30 players nominated for this year’s award. This is the third time the player, who currently plays for Al Nassr in Saudi Arabia, has not been included in the top 30. Nevertheless, he has shown excellent performance in the past season for both his national team and club.
Therefore, Ronaldo said, “It’s something that’s already decided,” giving an example of how last year’s award was not given to VinÃcius Jr. of Brazil and Real Madrid. Last year’s award went to Rodri, the midfielder from Manchester City and Spain, who was named the best player of the Euro football tournament. However, FIFA’s The Best award went to VinÃcius Jr., who played exceptionally well for Real Madrid and helped the club win the Champions League.
“I think VinÃcius should have won the award last year. Now it has no value. I’m very angry,” Ronaldo said.
The player who has won this award the most times is Ronaldo’s biggest rival, Argentina’s captain Lionel Messi. He has won it eight times.
