Ballon d'Or Nationalities
Here is a list of the number of winners of the Ballon d'Or by country. Argentina is on top of this list despite non-European players not being eligible for the award for a long time. From 1956 until 1994 only European players were eligible to win the award. Between 1995 and 2006 players from around the world were eligible, though only if they were active at European clubs during that year. Since 2007, players from any country are eligible to win.
Argentine Lionel Messi has won the men's Ballon d'Or award a record eight times. Consequently, Argentina has provided the most winners, with Messi accounting for all of their wins. The tally may well be ten - two-time winner Alfredo Di Stéfano was born in Argentina and played for their national team before moving to Spain, becoming a Spanish citizen in 1956 the year before first winning the award.
Three Ukrainian players have won the Ballon d'Or: Andriy Shevchenko, Oleg Blokhin, and Igor Belanov, though Blokhin and Belanov were at that time Ukraine was part of the Soviet Union and are counted under that country, officially leaving only one Ukrainian winner.
2003 winner Pavel Nedvěd is officially the first and only Czech player to win the Ballon d'Or, though the 1962 winner Josef Masopust was born in Czechoslovakia, in an area which is now part of the Czech Republic.
The 1965 winner Eusébio was born in Mozambique, but at that time it was a colony of Portugal.
List of Winners by Country
| Country | Winners | Different Players |
|---|---|---|
| Argentina | 8 | 1 |
| France | 7 | 5 |
| Germany | 7 | 5 |
| Netherlands | 7 | 3 |
| Portugal | 7 | 3 |
| Italy | 5 | 5 |
| Brazil | 5 | 4 |
| England | 5 | 4 |
| Soviet Union | 3 | 3 |
| Spain | 3 | 2 |
| Bulgaria | 1 | 1 |
| Croatia | 1 | 1 |
| Czech Republic | 1 | 1 |
| Czechoslovakia | 1 | 1 |
| Denmark | 1 | 1 |
| Hungary | 1 | 1 |
| Liberia | 1 | 1 |
| Northern Ireland | 1 | 1 |
| Scotland | 1 | 1 |
| Ukraine | 1 | 1 |
First Time Winners
Here is a list of the first winner from each country that has produced a Ballon d'Or winner, sorted by years.
| Year | Country | First Winner |
|---|---|---|
| 2018 | Croatia | Luka Modric |
| 2009 | Argentina | Lionel Messi |
| 2004 | Ukraine | Andriy Shevchenko |
| 2003 | Czech Republic | Pavel Nedvěd |
| 1997 | Brazil | Ronaldo |
| 1995 | Liberia | George Weah |
| 1994 | Bulgaria | Hristo Stoichkov |
| 1977 | Denmark | Allan Simonsen |
| 1971 | Netherlands | Johan Cruyff |
| 1970 | Germany | Gerd Müller |
| 1968 | Northern Ireland | George Best |
| 1967 | Hungary | Flórián Albert |
| 1965 | Portugal | Eusébio |
| 1964 | Scotland | Denis Law |
| 1963 | Soviet Union | Lev Yashin |
| 1962 | Czechoslovakia | Josef Masopust |
| 1961 | Italy | Omar Sívori |
| 1958 | France | Raymond Kopa |
| 1957 | Spain | Alfredo Di Stéfano |
| 1956 | England | Stanley Matthews |
Related Pages
- Ballon d'Or Home
- Ballon d'Or Honorary Awards
- The Super Ballon d'Or
- Ballon d'Or History
- Ballon d'Or Trivia
- Football Awards Lists
- More Soccer Winners Lists
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