List of all Ballon d'Or winners in the 21st century, ft. Cristiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi, and others

Overview

• Lionel Messi has the most number of Ballon d'Or wins to his name (8), including four consecutive wins from 2009 to 2012
• Cristiano Ronaldo is second in the list, who won the biggest individual Football award five times
• Ousmane Dembele is the most recent winner, who won the award in 2025, following his heroics for Paris Saint-Germain

Lionel Messi has the most number of Ballon d'Or wins to his name (8), including four consecutive wins from 2009 to 2012. Cristiano Ronaldo is second in the list, who won the biggest individual Football award five times. Ousmane Dembele is the most recent winner, who won the award in 2025, following his heroics for Paris Saint-Germain.

Also Read: Ballon d'Or 2025: List of all Men's Johan Cruyff Trophy nominees

The concept of Ballon d'Or came into existence in 1956. England's Stanley Matthews became the inaugural winner. With each passing year, the prestige of the award grew manifold and became the most prestigeous individual Football award. Some of the biggest legends of the sport have won the award over the years.

The first quarter of the 21st century witnessed three Brazilians - Ronaldo, Ronaldinho, and Kaka win the award. In the entire 2010s, only Luka Modric won the award in 2018, apart from Messi and Cristiano. The last three winners have been Messi in 2023, Rodri in 2024, and Dembele in 2025.

Also Check: La Liga: Ferran Torres nets double as FC Barcelona thrash Getafe

List of all Ballon d'Or winners in the 21st century