Cristiano Ronaldo of Manchester United has received his lowest Ballon d’Or ranking ever after 17 years of co-dominating the award.
Cristiano Ronaldo, a forward for Manchester United, placed 20th overall in the 2022 Ballon d’Or rankings.
Ronaldo has won the top individual prestigious award five times overall, first doing so with United in 2008.
He won the award four more times while playing for Real Madrid in 2013, 2014, 2016, and 2017.
Ronaldo’s sixth-place performance in the previous season was his worst ever at the time. But after a shaky start to the season, he has fallen to new lows.
In 2022, the Ballon d’Or honors was significantly different because, for the first time in 16 years, neither Lionel Messi nor Cristiano Ronaldo stood on the platform.
While Messi missed the shortlist for the first time since 2005, Ronaldo finished in 20th position, his lowest finish in 17 years.
With 12 wins between them, the two superstars have dominated the honor over the past ten years.
Messi set a record by winning the Ballon d’Or seven times in 2021. But this year’s winner was completely different just like in 2018 when Luka Modric broke Messi and Ronaldo’s streaks by winning the award ahead of them.
Karim Benzema, a striker for Real Madrid, received the famous trophy on Monday night, October 17. He had an outstanding season, winning La Liga and the Champions League with Real Madrid, and frequently turning the tide of games by himself.
Real Madrid won the championship the previous season thanks to his 27 league goals.
Additionally, Benzema scored 15 goals in Europe as Real Madrid completed a hat trick of trophies by winning the Champions League.
For the most coveted individual accolade in football, Benzema was only one of 30 contenders, and France Football has now released the official rankings of where all 30 placed following the final voting.
It means Luka Modric won the accolade in 2018, making him (Benzema) just the second player since 2007 to do so besides Cristiano Ronaldo or Lionel Messi.
Since 2004, Ronaldo has appeared on the 30-player Ballon d’Or shortlist each year.
The top five Ballon D’or rankings for 2022 are listed below:
Benzema Karim – Real Madrid
Benzema had a genuinely fantastic season, winning the Champions League, La Liga, and UEFA Nations League while scoring over 40 goals for club and country and dishing out numerous assists.
Bayern Munich player Sadio Mane
After leading Senegal to victory at the Africa Cup of Nations in January, Mane’s final season at Liverpool got off to a poor start, but once he got back to it, he gave Reds fans plenty of memorable moments.
Manchester City’s Kevin De Bruyne
De Bruyne performed admirably during the first half of the season before blowing up in the second half, scoring key pivotal goals for City in both the Premier League and the Champions League.
Barça’s Robert Lewandowski
In what turned out to be his final season at Bayern Munich, Lewandowski had another 50-goal season, but it wasn’t enough to earn him his first Ballon d’Or.
Salah, Mohamed – Liverpool
Salah, who was arguably the best player in the world for the first half of last season, continued to be crucial for Liverpool in the latter stages despite disappointing Egypt on the international scene.
What Next for Cristiano Ronaldo?
Ronaldo will be hoping to keep his spot in the starting XI for Wednesday’s match against Tottenham at Old Trafford after making his first Premier League start since August against Newcastle last time out.
