Ballon d’Or 2021 LIVE as Lionel Messi beats Robert Lewandowski and Jorginho for award
2021 Ballon d’Or ceremony took place on Monday with Lionel Messi beating Robert Lewandowski to the men’s award as Alexia Putellas collecting the women’s prize
Lionel Messi has won the men’s 2021 Ballon d’Or, and a record seventh trophy, at an awards ceremony in Paris on Monday evening.
Messi, 34, held off the challenge of Bayern Munich’s Robert Lewandowski, Real Madrid’s Karim Benzema and Chelsea’s Jorginho to collect the prize and move two clear in his long-running battle with five-time winner Cristiano Ronaldo, who was among the 30 players shortlisted but did not feature in the top three for the first time in 11 years.
Messi was the favourite to collect the award after winning the Copa America with Argentina earlier this year – his first major international trophy – despite one of his less impressive periods at club level: Barcelona finished third in La Liga and fell in the first knockout round of the Champions League. However, Messi scored two goals as Barca won the Copa del Rey final and he was La Liga’s top goalscorer once more, before switching to Paris Saint-Germain in the summer.
Lewandowski did pick up the consolation prize of the newly formed Striker of the Year award, while the Women’s Ballon d’Or went to Barcelona captain Alexia Putellas.
Further awards went to Gianluigi Donnarumma for the Yashin Trophy of best goalkeeper, to Barcelona midfielder Pedri as the starlet was handed the Kopa Trophy and another new award went to Chelsea for Club of the Year for their on-pitch achievements with both men’s and women’s teams. You can follow all the latest updates and reaction below. Keep up with all the latest breaking news by signing up to our free email alerts by clicking here.
Lionel Messi wins Ballon d’Or 2021 to claim record seventh trophy
Alexia Putellas wins Ballon d’Or 2021 after starring role in Barcelona’s treble-winning season
Robert Lewandowski wins Striker of the Year at Ballon d’Or 2021 award ceremony after prolific year with Bayern Munich
Pedri wins Kopa Trophy at Ballon d’Or 2021 award ceremony after shining for Barcelona and Spain
Gianluigi Donnarumma wins goalkeeper’s Yashin Trophy at Ballon d’Or 2021 awards ceremony
Lionel Messi wants Robert Lewandowski to be given ‘deserved’ Ballon d’Or for 2020
Ballon d’Or 2021: Messi and Mbappe among latest arrivals
Kylian Mbappe and his dad! Didier Drogba with his sons! Lionel Messi with his entire family!
The past, present and future of many, many goals at the elite end of world football right here.
Ballon d’Or 2021: Latest arrivals
And the favourite arrives!
Lionel Messi is hoping to win his seventh Ballon d’Or tonight, which is utterly absurd levels of career-long consistency. In his corner, of course, is a certain Copa America win over the summer, a massive achievement he and the entire nation had waited a long time for at senior level.
Ballon d’Or 2021: Latest arrivals
Kylian Mbappe: Left-handed. There you go. The same youngster just got the forward’s signature for free; suspect any clubs hoping to do the same in the summer will actually find it costs them rather more over the long term.
Might get them a few goals, though.
Ballon d’Or 2021: Latest arrivals
From the last post, at the top we had Robert Lewandowski (with karate medallist Anna Lewandowska); below was Fabio Cannavaro; then AS Monaco president Dmitry Rybolovlev; Didier Drogba (with fellow presenter tonight Sandy Heribert); then finally the Bayern Munich trio of Oliver Kahn, Julian Nagelsmann and Hasan Salihamidzic.
Can confirm Luis Suarez did not tackle anybody or win any penalties on his way in.
Ballon d’Or 2021: Latest arrivals
Spiderman duo Zendaya and Tom Holland, Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo, a French comedian and a man flourishing his cape - just some of the non-football related sights on the red carpet at the start of tonight. Tremendous.
Which current players and other football faces can you name from this crop? Answers in our next post - one is pretty easy, to be fair...
Ballon d’Or 2021: Latest arrivals
Robert Lewandowski here stealing the show by signing a football for a kid carrying a Messi jersey. Levels to that kind of mind-games.
Ballon d’Or 2021: Still to come tonight
Right, let’s get this in order: there are several things we don’t know about tonight.
First, here’s what will be revealed in the main event:
- Ballon d’Or top 10 and winner
- Ballon d’Or Feminine winner
- Kopa Trophy and Yashin Trophy winners
- Two new awards and (presumably) inaugural winners
Now, what about the things we aren’t entirely sure of:
- Whether a countdown is coming of the Women’s shortlist or just the winner
- Same, but for Kopa and Yashin
- What the two new awards are - though reports suggest they are ‘Club of the Year’ and ‘Striker of the Year’
Ballon d’Or 2021: Stars of today and yesterday
Stars both past and present of the game! Lieke Martens is hoping to land the Ballon d’Or Feminine, while Fabio Cannavaro was the 2006 winner after claiming the World Cup with Italy that year.
Ballon d’Or 2021: Red carpet arrivals
Oh look, our first images of the night are starting to drop: the players arriving who are on the shortlist, the dignitaries who are representing different clubs...and, of course, the main prize on offer, the Ballon d’Or itself. Here’s Denmark’s Simon Kjaer, who came 18th, and Emilio Butragueno, Real Madrid’s sporting director.
And the ole’ gold ball that 10 players are still hoping to win.
Ballon d’Or 2021: Ronaldo hits out at France Football
Cristiano Ronaldo isn’t holding back. He’s just posted this - France Football’s Pascal Ferre recently hit headlines by claiming Cristiano had told him that his “only ambition” was to “retire with more Ballon d’Or [wins] than Messi”.
Man United’s forward says Ferre has lied and used the Portuguese attacker’s name to promote himself and his publication, and says he always wants to congratulate those who win within sportsmanship and fair play and that his own ambitions are to win national and international titles for his club and country. More to come on that, no doubt.
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