Lev Ivanovich Yashin was a Soviet professional footballer considered by many to be the greatest goalkeeper in the history of the sport. He was known for his athleticism, positioning, imposing presence in goal, and acrobatic reflex saves. He was also deputy chairman of the Football Federation of the Soviet Union.
The FIFA World Player of the Year was an association football award presented annually by the sport's governing body, FIFA, between 1991 and 2015 at the FIFA World Player Gala. Coaches and captains of international teams and media representatives selected the player they deem to have performed the best in the previous calendar year.
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.
Michel Georges Jean Ghislain Preud'homme is a Belgian retired footballer and manager who played as a goalkeeper. Currently, he is vice-president and sports director at Standard Liège.
Lionel Andrés "Leo" Messi is an Argentine professional footballer who plays as a forward for and captains both Major League Soccer club Inter Miami and the Argentina national team. Widely regarded as one of the greatest players of all time, Messi set numerous records for individual accolades won throughout his professional footballing career such as eight Ballon d'Or awards and eight times being named the world's best player by FIFA. He is the most decorated player in the history of professional football having won 45 team trophies, including twelve Big Five league titles, four UEFA Champions Leagues, two Copa Américas, and one FIFA World Cup. Messi holds the records for most European Golden Shoes (6), most goals for a single club, most goals (474), hat-tricks (36) and assists (192) in La Liga, most matches played (39), assists (18) and goal contributions (34) in the Copa América, most matches played (26) and goal contributions (21) in the World Cup, most international appearances (191) and international goals (112) by a South American male, and the second-most in the latter category outright. A prolific goalscorer and creative playmaker, Messi has scored over 850 senior career goals for club and country.
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).
Jan Oblak is a Slovenian professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for La Liga club Atlético Madrid and captains the Slovenia national team. He is widely regarded as one of the best goalkeepers in the world.
Ronwen Hayden Williams is a South African professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for Premier Soccer League club Mamelodi Sundowns and captains the South Africa national team. In 2024, he was nominated for the Yashin Trophy becoming the first South African footballer to be nominated for a Ballon d'Or award. He is widely regarded as one of the best goalkeepers in Africa.
Damián Emiliano "Emi" Martínez Romero, sometimes known as Dibu, is an Argentine professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for Premier League club Aston Villa and the Argentina national team. Known as a specialist in saving penalty kicks, Martínez is widely regarded as one of the best goalkeepers in the world.
Yassine Bounou, also known as Bono, is a Moroccan professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for Saudi Pro League club Al-Hilal and the Morocco national team.
The 1975 Ballon d'Or, given to the best football player in Europe as judged by a panel of sports journalists from UEFA member countries, was awarded to the Soviet forward Oleg Blokhin on 30 December 1975. There were 26 voters, from Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Czechoslovakia, Denmark, East Germany, England, Finland, France, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Republic of Ireland, Romania, Soviet Union, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, West Germany and Yugoslavia. Blokhin became the second Soviet footballer who won the trophy after Lev Yashin (1963).
Rodrigo Hernández Cascante, known as Rodri or Rodrigo, is a Spanish professional footballer who plays as a defensive midfielder for Premier League club Manchester City and the Spain national team. Known for his passing, playmaking and physical attributes, he is widely regarded as one of the best players in the world, and one of the greatest defensive midfielders of all time.
The Kopa Trophy is an association football award presented to the best performing player worldwide under the age of 21 during a joint ceremony with the Ballon d'Or. The award is presented by France Football and is named after late French footballer Raymond Kopa, the winner of the 1958 Ballon d'Or.
The Ballon d'Or Féminin, also known as the Women's Ballon d'Or, is an association football award presented by France Football that honours the player deemed to have performed the best over the previous season.
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 2021 Ballon d'Or was the 65th annual ceremony of the Ballon d'Or, presented by France Football, recognising the best footballers in the world in 2021.
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.
The Gerd Müller Trophy, previously known as Striker of the Year or Best Striker Award in its first edition, is a football award presented annually by France Football to the highest-scoring footballer in the previous season, taking into account goals scored for both European clubs and national teams.
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.
The 2024 Ballon d'Or was the 68th annual ceremony of the Ballon d'Or. It was presented by France Football that recognized the best footballers in the world in the 2023–24 season. It was the third ceremony during which awards were presented based on the results of the season instead of the calendar year, specifically the period from 1 August 2023 to 31 July 2024. The nominees were announced on 4 September 2024 and the ceremony took take place on 28 October 2024. Two new accolades were awarded: Men's Coach of the Year and Women's Coach of the Year, recognizing the contribution of coaches to success on the pitch. UEFA co-organized the Ballon d'Or gala for the first time, while France Football retained the voting system and the Ballon d'Or name.
Emiliano Martínez 
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