Cristiano Ronaldo has taken a huge early lead over Lionel Messi in the public vote launched by the Ballon d’Or organisers to mark seven decades of the award, with the first partial results placing his 2008 season at the top of the standings on 62% of the total vote.
The initiative, staged under the B.O.A.T. (Best Of All Time) banner, is a departure from the traditional format. The Ballon d’Or itself is decided entirely by an international jury of journalists, but this symbolic contest has been opened to the general public through digital platforms, with fans paying one euro per vote and allowed to cast as many votes as they wish. Only players who have won the trophy at least twice during their careers were eligible to be included.
Ronaldo’s leading entry is his 2008 campaign at Manchester United, a season capped by Champions League and Premier League titles. Messi sits second on 13% for his 2012 year, in which he set the all-time record of 91 goals in a calendar year, while his 2023 version follows on 9% after he led Argentina to the World Cup title in Qatar. Ronaldo’s 2007 (7%) and 2016 (2%) campaigns are also drawing votes.
The structure of the poll explains part of the gap. Organisers evaluate each individual season in which a player won the award as a separate entry, meaning the players with the most trophies effectively compete against themselves across several slots — and Messi’s backing is split among the eight different award-winning campaigns represented. Outlets including Clarín highlighted how the distribution of votes has benefited Ronaldo’s first great European triumph. El Liberal and La Gaceta, by contrast, have focused their coverage almost entirely on the head-to-head between the two giants of 21st-century football.
The ten-legend shortlist assembled by organisers is completed by Alfredo Di Stéfano, Johan Cruyff, Franz Beckenbauer, Michel Platini, Marco van Basten, Karl-Heinz Rummenigge, Kevin Keegan and Ronaldo Nazário. Voting remains open until midnight on the eve of the gala on October 26, when the final tally will be locked in and the poll will serve as a curtain-raiser before the new holder of the golden trophy is revealed in the British capital.
Beyond the online poll, the pair remain locked in a further race. Both are still playing professionally, and both are chasing the milestone of becoming the first player in the modern era to officially reach 1,000 career goals. Ronaldo, the Funchal native, leads that pursuit after surpassing 980 goals in more than 1,300 appearances, while the Rosario-born Messi has surpassed 935 goals in more than 1,100 official appearances.