Ballon d'Or of All Time: fans pick Ronaldo's 2008 season over Messi
Cristiano Ronaldo's 2007-08 Manchester United season topped a fan vote on the greatest Ballon d'Or-winning season ever, ahead of Lionel Messi's 2012.
The essentials: Cristiano Ronaldo’s 2007-08 season with Manchester United, which earned him his first Ballon d’Or in 2008, has been voted the greatest Ballon d’Or-winning season of all time. The result of the fan poll, nicknamed the “BOAT” (Ballon d’Or of All Time), was published on October 28, 2026 by the award’s organisers on its official website. Lionel Messi’s 2012 season came second and Ronaldo’s 2017 season third.
What is the “Ballon d’Or of All Time”?
It is a public poll opened by France Football, the magazine that created the Ballon d’Or, according to World Soccer Talk. It is not an official trophy but a fan initiative. Voters were not asked to name the best player in history, but the best single season that earned a Ballon d’Or.
Only players who have won the award at least twice were on the ballot: Cristiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi, Ronaldo Nazário, Marco van Basten, Michel Platini, Karl-Heinz Rummenigge, Kevin Keegan, Franz Beckenbauer, Johan Cruyff and Alfredo Di Stéfano. Each vote cost one euro, and voting closed on October 27.
The final top 10
| Rank | Player | Ballon d’Or season |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Cristiano Ronaldo | 2008 |
| 2 | Lionel Messi | 2012 |
| 3 | Cristiano Ronaldo | 2017 |
| 4 | Lionel Messi | 2023 |
| 5 | Cristiano Ronaldo | 2016 |
| 6 | Cristiano Ronaldo | 2014 |
| 7 | Lionel Messi | 2015 |
| 8 | Cristiano Ronaldo | 2013 |
| 9 | Lionel Messi | 2011 |
| 10 | Lionel Messi | 2009 |
Source: TNT Sports.
Why did Ronaldo’s 2008 season win?
That season, Ronaldo scored 42 goals in all competitions for Manchester United, including 31 in the Premier League, and won both the Premier League and the Champions League, TNT Sports recalls.
The result was hardly a surprise. On October 22, while voting was still open, the 2008 season already had 75% of the votes, far ahead of Messi’s 2012 season (9%) and Ronaldo’s 2017 season (6%), World Soccer Talk reported at the time.
A Messi–Ronaldo affair
According to TNT Sports, the two players occupy the entire top 12 of the final vote. Messi had the most seasons on the ballot, eight in total (2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2015, 2019, 2021 and 2023), but his best-placed season, 2012, finished second. The older legends on the list, from Johan Cruyff to Michel Platini and Marco van Basten, finished outside the top 12.
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