Ballon d’Or 2023 Shortlist: Messi Favourite To Win 8th Award

Will Lionel Messi, a seven-time Ballon d’Or winner, claim his eighth award, or will Erling Haaland of Manchester City secure the most prestigious football award for the first time? We look at the shortlist for the 2023 Ballon d’Or award.

Messi led Argentina to a 2022 World Cup victory in Qatar and clinched the Ligue 1 title with PSG. In contrast, Haaland achieved a historic treble with Manchester City, netting 52 goals in his debut season.

HERE ARE ALL THE BALLON D'OR NOMINEES! 🌕✨

— Ballon d'Or #ballondor (@ballondor)

The Ballon d’Or shortlist is heavily populated by Argentina and Manchester City players due to their World Cup and domestic titles.

Cristiano Ronaldo, a five-time Ballon d’Or winner, is notably absent from the list for the first time since 2003.

In the Ballon d’Or Féminin category, Aitana Bonmati of Spain is the standout favourite, having led La Roja to their maiden World Cup win and securing the Champions League title with FC Barcelona.

The award winners will be revealed at the Ballon d’Or ceremony on October 30th at the Theatre du Chatelet in Paris.

You can find the complete list of nominees for both men’s and women’s awards below.

Men’s Nominees For Ballon d’Or 2023

• André Onana – Inter-Manchester United/Cameroon
• Josko Gvardiol – RB Lipsia-Manchester City/Croatia
• Karim Benzema – Real-Madrid-Al Ittihad
• Jamal Musiala – Bayern Munich/Germany
• Mohamed Salah – Liverpool/Egypt
• Jude Bellingham – Borussia Dortmund-Real Madrid/England
• Bukayo Saka – Arsenal/England
• Randal Kolo Muani – Eintracht Frankfurt-Paris Saint-Germain/France
• Kevin De Bruyne – Manchester City/Belgium
• Bernardo Silva – Manchester City/Portugal
• Emiliano Martínez – Aston Villa/Argentina
• Khvicha Kvaratskhelia – Napoli/Georgia
• Rúben Dias – Manchester City/Portugal
• Nicolo Barella – Inter Milan/Italy
• Erling Haaland – Manchester City/Norway
• Yassine Bounou – Sevilla-Al Hilal/Morocco
• Martin Ødegaard – Arsenal/Norway
• Julián Álvarez – Manchester City/Argentina
• Ilkay Gündogan – Barcelona/Germany
• Vinícius Júnior – Real Madrid/Brazil
• Lionel Messi – Paris Saint-Germain-Inter Miami/Argentina
• Rodri – Manchester City/Spain
• Lautaro Martínez – Inter Milan/Argentina
• Antoine Griezmann – Atletico Madrid/France
• Robert Lewandowski – Barcelona/Poland
• Kylian Mbappé – Paris Saint-Germain/France
• Kim Min-jae – Napoli-Bayern Munich/South Korea
• Victor Osimhen – Napoli/Nigeria
• Luka Modric – Real Madrid/Croatia
• Harry Kane – Tottenham-Bayern Munich/England

Women’s Nominees For Ballon d’Or 2023

• Aitana Bonmati – Barcelona/Spain
• Millie Bright – Chelsea/England
• Linda Caicedo – Real Madrid/Colombia
• Olga Carmona – Real Madrid/Spain
• Rachel Daly – Aston Villa/England
• Debinha – North Carolina-Kansas City/Brazil
• Kadidiatou Diani – Paris Saint-Germain-Lyon/France
• Mary Earps – Manchester United/England
• Patricia Guijarro – Barcelona/Spain
• Yui Hasegawa – Manchester City/Japan
• Amanda Ilestedt – Paris-Saint Germain-Arsenal/Sweden
• Sam Kerr – Chelsea/Australia
• Mapi Leon – Barcelona/Spain
• Katie McCabe – Arsenal/Republic of Ireland
• Hinata Miyazawa – MyNavi Senday-Manchester United/Japan
• Lena Oberdorf – Wolfsburg/Germany
• Asisat Oshoala – Barcelona/Nigeria
• Ewa Pajor – Wolfsburg/Poland
• Salma Paralluelo – Barcelona/Spain
• Alexandra Popp – Wolsburg/Germany
• Hayley Raso – Manchester City-Real Madrid/Australia
• Alba Redondo – Levante/Spain
• Guro Reiten – Chelsea/Norway
• Wendie Renard – Lyon/France
• Fridolina Rolfo – Barcelona/Sweden
• Jill Roord – Wolfsburg-Manchester City/Netherlands
• Khadija Shaw – Manchester City/Jamaica
• Sophia Smith – Portland Thorns/United States
• Georgia Stanway – Bayern Munich/England
• Daphne van Domselaar – Twente-Aston Villa/Netherlands