Who rules the Ballon d’Or?

Argentina and France are tied at the top of the all-time men's Ballon d’Or rankings, with eight wins apiece, but the two footballing nations have reached the summit in strikingly different ways.

Since the prestigious individual award was introduced in 1956 by French magazine France Football, Argentina's entire tally has come from Lionel Messi, who has won the trophy eight times. France, meanwhile, has collected its eight awards through six different players, most recently Ousmane Dembélé in 2025. 

Portugal, Germany and the Netherlands follow with seven wins each. Five-time World Cup champions Brazil have won the award five times, the same number as England and Italy. Spain have four wins.
Ballon d’Or wins by country

The following rankings cover the men's Ballon d’Or through the 2025 edition.

Argentina -- 8 wins: Lionel Messi (2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2015, 2019, 2021, 2023).
France -- 8 wins: Raymond Kopa (1958), Michel Platini (1983, 1984, 1985), Jean-Pierre Papin (1991), Zinedine Zidane (1998), Karim Benzema (2022) and Ousmane Dembélé (2025).
Portugal -- 7 wins: Eusébio (1965), Luís Figo (2000) and Cristiano Ronaldo (2008, 2013, 2014, 2016, 2017).
Germany --7 wins: Gerd Müller (1970), Franz Beckenbauer (1972, 1976), Karl-Heinz Rummenigge (1980, 1981), Lothar Matthäus (1990) and Matthias Sammer (1996).
Netherlands -- 7 wins: Johan Cruyff (1971, 1973, 1974), Ruud Gullit (1987) and Marco van Basten (1988, 1989, 1992).
Brazil -- 5 wins: Ronaldo (1997, 2002), Rivaldo (1999), Ronaldinho (2005) and Kaká (2007).
England -- 5 wins: Stanley Matthews (1956), Bobby Charlton (1966), Kevin Keegan (1978, 1979) and Michael Owen (2001).

The spotlight now turns to the 2026 Ballon d’Or ceremony, which will take place in London on Monday, October 26. The event marks a departure from the award's usual Paris setting and pays tribute to England's Stanley Matthews, the inaugural winner in 1956. 

Among the high-profile names attracting attention ahead of the ceremony are Harry Kane, Kylian Mbappé and Lamine Yamal. The final outcome remains to be seen, with football fans awaiting the announcement of the winners.

With Argentina and France level on eight men's trophies, the race for national supremacy remains finely balanced. Whether France can move ahead or another country can close the gap will be one of the intriguing storylines in the award's continuing history.