The history of Ballon d’Or winners of African descent highlights two distinct categories:
Together, they underscore both the direct impact of Africa in producing world-class talent and the enduring influence of African heritage in global football, whether through migration, colonial ties, or diaspora communities.
Ballon d’Or Winners Since 1956
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- 1956 – Stanley Matthews (England)
- 1957 – Alfredo Di Stefano (Spain)
- 1958 – Raymond Kopa (France)
- 1959 – Alfredo Di Stefano (Spain)
- 1960 – Luis Suarez (Spain)
- 1961 – Omar Sivori (Italy)
- 1962 – Josef Masopust (Czechoslovakia)
- 1963 – Lev Yashin (Soviet Union)
- 1964 – Denis Law (Scotland)
- 1965 – Eusébio (Portugal)
- 1966 – Bobby Charlton (England)
- 1967 – Florian Albert (Hungary)
- 1968 – George Best (Northern Ireland)
- 1969 – Gianni Rivera (Italy)
- 1970 – Gerd Müller (West Germany)
- 1971 – Johan Cruyff (Netherlands)
- 1972 – Franz Beckenbauer (West Germany)
- 1973 – Johan Cruyff (Netherlands)
- 1974 – Johan Cruyff (Netherlands)
- 1975 – Oleg Blokhin (Soviet Union)
- 1976 – Franz Beckenbauer (West Germany)
- 1977 – Allan Simonsen (Denmark)
- 1978 – Kevin Keegan (England)
- 1979 – Kevin Keegan (England)
- 1980 – Karl-Heinz Rummenigge (West Germany)
- 1981 – Karl-Heinz Rummenigge (West Germany)
- 1982 – Paolo Rossi (Italy)
- 1983 – Michel Platini (France)
- 1984 – Michel Platini (France)
- 1985 – Michel Platini (France)
- 1986 – Igor Belanov (Soviet Union)
- 1987 – Ruud Gullit (Netherlands)
- 1988 – Marco van Basten (Netherlands)
- 1989 – Marco van Basten (Netherlands)
- 1990 – Lothar Matthäus (Germany)
- 1991 – Jean-Pierre Papin (France)
- 1992 – Marco van Basten (Netherlands)
- 1993 – Roberto Baggio (Italy)
- 1994 – Hristo Stoichkov (Bulgaria)
- 1995 – George Weah (Liberia)
- 1996 – Matthias Sammer (Germany)
- 1997 – Ronaldo (Brazil)
- 1998 – Zinedine Zidane (France)
- 1999 – Rivaldo (Brazil)
- 2000 – Luís Figo (Portugal)
- 2001 – Michael Owen (England)
- 2002 – Ronaldo (Brazil)
- 2003 – Pavel Nedvěd (Czech Republic)
- 2004 – Andriy Shevchenko (Ukraine)
- 2005 – Ronaldinho (Brazil)
- 2006 – Fabio Cannavaro (Italy)
- 2007 – Kaká (Brazil)
- 2008 – Cristiano Ronaldo (Portugal)
- 2009 – Lionel Messi (Argentina)
- 2010 – Lionel Messi (Argentina)*
- 2011 – Lionel Messi (Argentina)*
- 2012 – Lionel Messi (Argentina)*
- 2013 – Cristiano Ronaldo (Portugal)*
- 2014 – Cristiano Ronaldo (Portugal)*
- 2015 – Lionel Messi (Argentina)*
- 2016 – Cristiano Ronaldo (Portugal)
- 2017 – Cristiano Ronaldo (Portugal)
- 2018 – Luka Modrić (Croatia)
- 2019 – Lionel Messi (Argentina)
- 2020 – Cancelled (COVID-19 pandemic)
- 2021 – Lionel Messi (Argentina)
- 2022 – Karim Benzema (France)
- 2023 – Lionel Messi (Argentina)
- 2024 – Rodri (Spain)
- 2025 – Ousmane Dembélé (France)
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