Which players have won the Ballon d’Or since Lionel Messi last received it?

Lionel Messi won his eighth Ballon d’Or on October 30, 2023, capping off an extraordinary World Cup-winning run with Argentina. Since that historic night at the Théâtre du Châtelet in Paris, only three players have lifted the men’s trophy:

• Rodri (2024): The Manchester City and Spain midfielder claimed the 2024 prize following an incredible season in which he anchored Manchester City to a fourth consecutive Premier League title and guided Spain to glory at UEFA Euro 2024.
• Ousmane Dembele (2025): The French forward captured the 2025 Ballon d’Or after a spectacular campaign leading Paris Saint-Germain’s dynamic attack.
• Harry Kane (2026): The English Ballon d’Or winner made 84 goal contributions and had an impressive season altogether at 33 years old with both Bayern Munich and England.

Messi didn’t attend the Ballon d’Or gala, but he was and is heavily featured. The reason is simple, he still was amongst the top 10 finalists, making clear he is still a top-tier player, ending fifth in the final voting results.

Messi’s Ballon d’Or record seems untouchable

Lionel Messi’s tally of 8 Ballons d’Or (2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2015, 2019, 2021, 2023) represents one of the most formidable benchmarks in sporting history. He dominates the all-time Ballon d’Or winners list. To put Messi’s record into perspective, there are three key feats:

• Generational longevity: Messi won his first and eighth awards 14 years apart, showing sustained peak excellence across three separate decades.
• More than entire nations: Messi has won more Ballons d’Or on his own (8) than nearly every country in football history. Only France has produced 8 total awards, spread across six different players.
• The new era of parity: Following the departure of Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo from European club football, individual awards have become far more distributed among emerging talents like Rodri, Dembele, and others, making a continuous multi-trophy reign statistically improbable.

See also

Why wasn’t Cristiano Ronaldo nominated for the 2026 Ballon d’Or?

How many active players have multiple Ballon d’Or awards?

Only two active players hold multiple men’s Ballon d’Or trophies:

Every other multiple winner in history, including three-time recipients Johan Cruyff, Michel Platini, and Marco van Basten, as well as two-time winners Franz Beckenbauer, Ronaldo Nazario, Alfredo Di Stefano, Kevin Keegan, and Karl-Heinz Rummenigge, are retired.

Key takeaways

• Lionel Messi won his eighth Ballon d’Or on October 30, 2023.
• Harry Kane made 84 goal contributions during his Ballon d’Or-winning 2026 season.
• Only two active players hold multiple men’s Ballon d’Or trophies.