A Look at the Coveted Ballon d’ Or

The coveted Ballon d’ Or has fascinated not only the players who are vying for the honor of holding it, but also the fans who eagerly await the announcements. And as the 2014 World Cup draws near, many would definitely want to know more about the soccer trophy.

The origins

Like many of the other awards associated with the World Cup, the Ballon d’ Or traces its roots back to France. The award takes its name from the Ballon d’ Or award given by popular soccer magazine France Football to players in the European football scene that had shown an exemplary performance. The first award was given to English player Sir Stanley Matthews in 1956.

For almost four decades, the Ballon d’ Or was exclusively the domain of European players from European ball clubs. These all changed in 1995, when the award was opened to all players regardless of nationality, as long as they are currently playing for a European team. In 2007, the award was further opened to more players, when it was decided that players from clubs all over the world are now eligible for it. And after being more of side award given by an independent body for much of its history, in 2013, it was combined with the FIFA World Player of the Year award.

The names 

Just looking at the names of the players who have received the coveted award reveals a spectacular amount of story for the game itself.

The very first recipient of the award, Matthews, for instance is considered to be an exceptional player during his heydays, but never received any trophies aside from that which he won for Blackpool in 1953. Nevertheless, he was such a talented player, that he had kept kicking when most other players are already slowing down. In fact, he actually received the d’ Or at the ripe old age of 41.

Another notable player in the history of the Ballon d’ Or is Liberian forward George Weah. Weah was notable for having snatched both it and the FIFA World Player of the Year Award from the domination of European and South American kickers in 1995. But Weah showed why he deserves the award and why Africa is not to be overlooked on the field. 

By the numbers

During its more than half a century of its colourful run, 52 out of the total of 57 awards were unsurprisingly given to either a forward or an attacking midfielder. Serie A and LaLiga are considered two of the most productive leagues in terms of d’ Or awardees, netting 18 and 16 throphies respectively.  Amusingly enough, all if the times when the Ballon d’ Or was run under the FIFA banner alongside the World Player of the Yea in 2010 to 2012, only one man took it for himself-Lionel Messi.