The organizers of the 2023 men’s Ballon d’Or released a list of 30 players on Wednesday. Among the nominees for the award, which will be presented in Paris on October 30, are Lionel Messi, Erling Haaland, Mo Salah, and Kevin De Bruyne. Messi, a seven-time Ballon d’Or winner, is widely considered the frontrunner, having led Argentina to victory at the FIFA World Cup in Qatar last year. Other nominees include 2022 World Cup winners Emiliano Martinez, Julian Alvarez, and Lautaro Martinez.
Erling Haaland, who scored 52 goals in 53 games for Manchester City last season, is seen as Messi’s primary rival for the award. If he wins, Haaland would become the first Norwegian man to ever claim the Ballon d’Or, while Ada Hegerberg, a Norwegian striker, won the Ballon d’Or Féminin in 2018. Of the 30 nominees, 27 currently play for European clubs, with only two, Karim Benzema and Yassine Bounou, having recently signed for Saudi Arabian teams. Lionel Messi, captain of Inter Miami, is the sole player based in the USA on the list.
Here is the complete list of the 2023 Men’s Ballon d’Or Nominees:
– Mohamed Salah – Liverpool/Egypt
– Jamal Musiala – Bayern Munich/Germany
– Karim Benzema – Al-Ittihad/France
– Andre Onana – Man United/Cameroon
– Josko Gvardiol – Man City/Croatia
– Julian Alvarez – Man City/Argentina
– Yassine Bounou – Al-Hilal/Morocco
– Vinicius Jr – Real Madrid/Brazil
– Ilkay Gundogan – Barcelona/Germany
– Martin Odegaard – Arsenal/Norway
– Erling Haaland – Man City/Norway
– Nicolo Barella – Inter Milan/Italy
– Ruben Dias – Man City/Portugal
– Emiliano Martinez – Aston Villa/Argentina
– Khvicha Kvaratskhelia – Napoli/Georgia
– Bernardo Silva – Manchester City/Portugal
– Randal Kolo Muani – PSG/France
– Jude Bellingham – Real Madrid/England
– Kevin De Bruyne – Manchester City/Belgium
– Bukayo Saka – Arsenal/England
– Lionel Messi – Inter Miami/Argentina
– Rodri – Man City/Spain
– Lautaro Martinez – Inter Milan/Argentina
– Antoine Griezmann – Atletico Madrid/France
– Robert Lewandowski – Barcelona/Poland
– Kim Min-jae – Bayern Munich/South Korea
– Luka Modric – Real Madrid/Croatia
– Kylian Mbappe – PSG/France
– Victor Osimhen – Napoli/Nigeria
– Harry Kane – Bayern Munich/England
