Ballon d'Or: How countries compare in all-time wins

Ballon d'Or: How countries compare in all-time wins - The Ballon d’Or trophy. (Photo: Ballon d’Or)

The next winner will be announced in London on October 26, with Harry Kane, Lamine Yamal, defending champion Ousmane Dembélé and Kylian Mbappé among the 30 nominees.

The Ballon d’Or has been awarded since 1956, but players from outside Europe had to wait until 1995 to compete for football’s most prestigious individual prize.

That history is reflected in the all-time rankings, where European countries occupy several of the top positions. France and Argentina lead the men’s award with eight wins each, followed by Portugal, Germany and the Netherlands with seven apiece.

The next winner will be announced in London on October 26, with Harry Kane, Lamine Yamal, defending champion Ousmane Dembélé and Kylian Mbappé among the 30 nominees.

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Below is a breakdown of the countries with the most men’s Ballon d’Or wins and the players who earned them.

Argentina and France share the lead

Argentina’s eight wins all belong to Lionel Messi, who claimed the award in 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2015, 2019, 2021 and 2023. His final victory came after Argentina won the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, adding the sport’s biggest international title to his collection.

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France has spread its eight awards across six players. Michel Platini won three consecutive times from 1983 to 1985. Raymond Kopa (1958), Jean-Pierre Papin (1991), Zinedine Zidane (1998), Karim Benzema (2022) and Ousmane Dembélé (2025) account for the other five victories.

Portugal, Germany and the Netherlands have seven each

Cristiano Ronaldo has won five of Portugal’s seven awards. Eusébio became the country’s first winner in 1965, while Luís Figo claimed the prize in 2000. Ronaldo’s first win came in 2008, followed by four more during his career.

Germany’s seven wins are shared among five players: Gerd Müller, Franz Beckenbauer, Karl-Heinz Rummenigge, Lothar Matthäus and Matthias Sammer. The total includes awards won by West German players before the country’s reunification.

The Netherlands has had three winners. Johan Cruyff won three times in the 1970s, Ruud Gullit claimed the award in 1987, and Marco van Basten won three times between 1988 and 1992.

Brazil, England and Italy have five each

Brazil’s five awards came through Ronaldo, who won in 1997 and 2002, as well as Rivaldo, Ronaldinho and Kaká. Brazilian players became eligible in 1995 when the rules expanded to include footballers of any nationality playing for European clubs.

England’s five wins came from four players. Stanley Matthews won the inaugural award in 1956, Bobby Charlton followed in 1966, Kevin Keegan won in 1978 and 1979, and Michael Owen claimed the prize in 2001.

Italy’s five winners are Omar Sivori, Gianni Rivera, Paolo Rossi, Roberto Baggio and Fabio Cannavaro. Rossi won in 1982, the year Italy lifted the World Cup, while Cannavaro received the award in 2006 after captaining Italy to another World Cup title.

Spain has four wins

Spain has won the award four times, including two victories by Alfredo Di Stéfano in 1957 and 1959. Luis Suárez became the country’s next winner in 1960.

The latest Spanish winner is Rodri, who received the award in 2024 after helping Manchester City win the Premier League, and Spain lift the European Championship.

Other countries with winners

The Soviet Union has produced three winners: goalkeeper Lev Yashin in 1963, Oleh Blokhin in 1975 and Igor Belanov in 1986. Czechoslovakia’s Josef Masopust won in 1962, while Czech player Pavel Nedvěd claimed the award in 2003.

Scotland’s Denis Law won in 1964, Hungary’s Flórián Albert in 1967, Northern Ireland’s George Best in 1968 and Denmark’s Allan Simonsen in 1977. Bulgaria’s Hristo Stoichkov won in 1994 while Liberia’s George Weah followed in 1995. Ukraine’s Andriy Shevchenko also won in 2004, while Croatia’s Luka Modrić claimed the award in 2018.

Weah remains the only African player to have won the award, doing so while playing for AC Milan. His victory came in 1995 when the rule changes allowed players of any nationality at European clubs to compete.