Zinedine Yazid Zidane, popularly known as Zizou, is a French professional football manager and former player who played as an attacking midfielder. He most recently coached La Liga club Real Madrid and is one of the most successful coaches in the world. Widely regarded as one of the greatest players of all time, Zidane was a playmaker renowned for his elegance, vision, passing, and ball control. He received many individual accolades as a player, including being named FIFA World Player of the Year in 1998, 2000 and 2003, and winning the 1998 Ballon d'Or.
Michel François Platini is a French football administrator and former player and manager. Regarded as one of the greatest footballers of all time, Platini won the Ballon d'Or three times in a row, in 1983, 1984 and 1985, and came seventh in the FIFA Player of the Century vote. In recognition of his achievements, he was named a Chevalier of the Légion d'honneur in 1985 and became an Officier in 1998. As the president of UEFA in 2015 he was banned from involvement in football under FIFA's organisation, over ethics violations. The ban lasted until 2023.
The Ballon d'Or is an annual football award presented by French magazine France Football since 1956 to honour the player deemed to have performed the best over the previous season.
Jean-Pierre Roger Guillaume Papin is a French football manager and former professional player who played as a forward, who is currently the head coach of Championnat National 3 club Marseille B. He won the Ballon d'Or in 1991.
The African Footballer of the Year award, presented to the best African footballer each year, has been conferred by the Confederation of African Football (CAF) since 1992.
Karim Mostafa Benzema is a French professional footballer who plays as a striker for and captains Saudi Pro League club Al-Ittihad. Regarded as one of the best strikers of all time, he is a creative forward known for his technical skills, vision and versatility on the field, Benzema is Real Madrid's all-time second-highest goalscorer and top assist provider. He won 25 trophies with Real Madrid, including four La Liga, three Copa del Rey, and five UEFA Champions League titles. He has scored over 400 career goals for club and country.
Billel Dziri is an Algerian football manager, former player and the current head coach of ES Ben Aknoun.
El Clásico or El Clàssic, both meaning "The Classic", is the name given to any football match between rival clubs Barcelona and Real Madrid. Originally referring to competitions held in the Spanish championship, the term now includes every match between the clubs, such as those in the UEFA Champions League, Supercopa de España and Copa del Rey. It is considered one of sport's fiercest rivalries, and its matches have a global audience of hundreds of millions. A fixture known for its intensity, it has featured memorable goal celebrations from both teams, often involving mockery from both sides.
The CAF Awards is an awards evening held to honour the best African association football players. It is conferred by the Confederation of African Football (CAF).
The Trophées UNFP du football are a number of awards given annually by the Union Nationale des Footballeurs Professionnels (UNFP) to players playing in France's Ligue 1, Ligue 2, and Division 1 Féminine, as well as to managers and referees. The most prestigious award is the Ligue 1 Player of the Year. Created in 1988 under the name Oscars du football, they were renamed in 2004 after a complaint by the Academy Awards committee. The ceremony has been broadcast live on Canal+ since 1994.
Paul Bonga Bonga is a Congolese footballer of the 1950s and 1960s. A midfielder, he rose to prominence during his time in Belgium at Standard Liège and was perhaps best remembered as the first African footballer to be selected in the World Soccer Magazine world XI, when he was chosen in 1961.
Kylian Mbappé Lottin is a French professional footballer who plays as a forward for La Liga club Real Madrid and captains the France national team. Widely regarded as one of the best players in the world, he is known for his dribbling, finishing, and speed.
The French Player of the Year is an association football award presented annually by the French magazine France Football since 1959. Originally, only French players playing in France were eligible, but starting in 1996 French players playing abroad were in contention to win the trophy. Since 2001, former winners have elected the Player of the Year.
El PaísKing of European Soccer was an annual football award given by Uruguayan newspaper El País to the best footballer in Europe. It had been decided by several European sports experts, critics and journalists based on votes. Any player from a European team was eligible, regardless their country of origin. It was first awarded in 1991 with French Jean-Pierre Papin having been the inaugural winner. The last winner was Argentine Lionel Messi in 2012. Messi and Zinedine Zidane are the record winners of the award with four wins each.
The 2019 Ballon d'Or was the 64th annual ceremony of the Ballon d'Or, presented by France Football, and recognising the best footballers in the world for 2019. Barcelona superstar Lionel Messi won his record-breaking sixth award and broke the tie with Cristiano Ronaldo for most Ballon d'Or awards. Virgil van Dijk came in a very close second after a stellar year with Liverpool and Netherlands national team while Cristiano Ronaldo came in third with Juventus.
The 2022–23 Ligue 1, also known as Ligue 1 Uber Eats for sponsorship reasons, was the 85th season of the Ligue 1, France's premier football competition. It began on 5 August 2022 and concluded on 3 June 2023.
The 2022 Ballon d'Or was the 66th annual presentation of the Ballon d'Or, presented by France Football, recognising the best footballers in the world during the 2021–22 season. For the first time in the history of the award, it was given based on the results of the European season, instead of the calendar year. The nominees for the ceremony were announced on 12 August 2022, and the ceremony was held on 17 October. Karim Benzema won the Ballon d'Or, for successfully leading Real Madrid to win both UEFA Champions League and La Liga. Alexia Putellas claimed the Ballon d'Or Féminin, following her successful domestic campaign with Barcelona. In the other award categories, Gavi was given the Kopa Trophy, Thibaut Courtois won the Yashin Trophy, Robert Lewandowski was presented the newly named Gerd Müller Trophy, Sadio Mané was awarded the inaugural Sócrates Award, and Manchester City claimed the Club of the Year award.
Olivier Frapolli is a French professional football manager and former player who currently manager of Ligue 2 club Laval.
The 2023 Ballon d'Or was the 67th annual ceremony of the Ballon d'Or, presented by France Football magazine, recognising the best footballers in the world in the 2022–2023 season. For the second time in the history of the award, it was given based on the results of the season instead of the calendar year, with the season starting on 1 August 2022 and ending 31 July 2023. The nominees were announced on 6 September 2023 and the ceremony took place on 30 October 2023.
Erling Haaland 
Lionel Messi 
