Cristiano Ronaldo Wins Ballon D'Or? Portugal Superstar Beats Lionel Messi To Clinch France Football's All-Time Award

Cristiano Ronaldo has won the inaugural B.O.A.T. (Ballon d'Or of All Time) award, with fans voting his 2008 Ballon d'Or-winning season at Manchester United as the greatest campaign in the prize's history. The public vote was held as part of the 70th-anniversary celebrations of the Ballon d'Or.

Ronaldo finished ahead of Lionel Messi, whose 2012 Ballon d'Or-winning season came second in the rankings.

Ronaldo's Winning Campaign

Ronaldo's winning campaign came in 2007-08.

He scored 42 goals in all competitions for Manchester United that season. His form helped the club win both the Premier League and the UEFA Champions League under Sir Alex Ferguson.

That season also delivered Ronaldo's first Ballon d'Or. In the 2008 voting, he finished ahead of Barcelona's Messi and Liverpool's Fernando Torres.

Ronaldo went on to collect five Ballon d'Or awards over his career.

Messi And Rankings

Messi took second place.

His runner-up campaign was his 2012 Ballon d'Or-winning year, when he scored 91 goals across club and international football. That total set the record for the most goals scored in a calendar year.

Ronaldo placed third for his 2017 Ballon d'Or-winning season. Messi's 2023 campaign came fourth, while Ronaldo's 2016 season finished fifth.

The top 10 rankings featured only Ronaldo and Messi's campaigns.

How The Vote Worked

France Football launched the B.O.A.T. initiative to mark 70 years of the Ballon d'Or.

Fans were asked to choose the greatest Ballon d'Or-winning season from a shortlist of 10 players who had won the award at least twice. The nominees were Ronaldo, Messi, Johan Cruyff, Michel Platini, Marco van Basten, Ronaldo Nazario, Franz Beckenbauer, Kevin Keegan, Alfredo Di Stefano and Karl-Heinz Rummenigge.

The format differs from the main Ballon d'Or. The traditional award is decided by an international panel of journalists, while the B.O.A.T. rankings come from a public vote.

The poll also has a paid entry. Voters have to pay to take part and are entered into a draw for tickets to the 2027 Ballon d'Or ceremony. The B.O.A.T. is not an extra official Ballon d'Or honour or a physical trophy. It is a fan-led exercise that recognises the most popular Ballon d'Or-winning campaign in the poll.