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2022 Ballon d'Or nominees: Lionel Messi, Neymar snubbed in 30-man shortlist

France Football has finally released the much anticipated shortlist for the 2022 Ballon d'Or ceremony, to be held on October 17. Lionel Messi, winner of the 2021 edition, was snubbed alongside PSG teammate Neymar.

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By martín o’donnell

Lionel Messi was snubbed in the 2022 Ballon d'Or 30-man shortlist.
© Aurelien Meunier/Getty ImagesLionel Messi was snubbed in the 2022 Ballon d'Or 30-man shortlist.

The moment we’ve been waiting for is here. On Friday, France Football released announced the 30 nomineesfor the2022 Ballon d’Or. The winner will be knownonOctober 17, in a ceremony to be held at Théâtre du Châtelet in Paris.

For the first time since 2005, Lionel Messi didn’t makethe cut. The Argentine star, who holds the record for most Ballon d’Ors won, had won the prize last year in a decision that sparked controversy, as many thought Robert Lewandowski deserved it more than him.

The Ballon d’Or criteria has changed this year, taking into account the typical club season rather than the calendar year. With that in mind, Messi’s omission maybe explained by his lackluster2021-22 campaign in his first year since leaving Barcelona. Even so, to overlookone of, if not the best playerof all time in a list of 30 players is very questionable.PSG teammate Neymar was also snubbed in the 30-man shortlist.

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2022 Ballon d’Or nominees: 30-man shortlist released without Messi, Neymar

While Messi and Neymar were not nominated, Paris Saint-Germain teammate Kylian Mbappe was included in the shortlist and is among the favorites to win the award. Vinicius Junior is also a heavy candidate, but Real Madrid goalscoring machine Karim Benzema is without any doubt the frontrunner after a fantastic season.

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2022 Ballon d’Or Nominees:

  1. Thibaut Courtois
  2. Rafael Leão
  3. Christopher Nkunku
  4. Mohamed Salah
  5. Joshua Kimmich
  6. Trent Alexander-Arnold
  7. Vinicius JR
  8. Bernardo Silva
  9. Luis Díaz
  10. Robert Lewandowski
  11. Riyad Mahrez
  12. Casemiro
  13. Heung-Min Son
  14. Fabinho
  15. Karim Benzema
  16. Mike Maignan
  17. Harry Kane
  18. Darwin Núñez
  19. Phil Foden
  20. Sadio Mané
  21. Sébastien Haller
  22. Luka Modrić
  23. Antonio Rüdiger
  24. Cristiano Ronaldo
  25. Kevin De Bruyne
  26. Dušan Vlahović
  27. Virgil van Dijk
  28. João Cancelo
  29. Kylian Mbappé
  30. Erling Haaland

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