The 30-person shortlist for the 2024 Ballon d'Or includes six players who assisted England in making it to the Euro 2024 championship. The following players are vying for the coveted honor, which will be given to the finest male football player in 2024: forwards Bukayo Saka and Cole Palmer, midfielders Jude Bellingham, Phil Foden, and Declan Rice, and captain Harry Kane. The winger for Barcelona and Spain, Lamine Yamal, who just turned 17 in July, is also a contender. England advanced to the Euro 2024 final, but on July 14 in Berlin, they lost to Spain 2-1. Eight players from Manchester City and Arsenal—who placed first and second in the Premier League, respectively—have combined to be nominated.
Lionel Messi, an eight-time Ballon d'Or winner who won the award in 2023 and plays forward for Inter Miami and Argentina, is not included on this list. Neither Messi, 37, nor Cristiano Ronaldo, 39, who has won five times, have been on the list of nominees since 2003.
A first-time winner is assured because Karim Benzema and Luka Modric, the two other past recipients who are currently active, were not included on the shortlist. A jury of journalists from each of the top 100 nations in the Fifa men's global ranking casts their votes for the award. Kobbie Mainoo and Alejandro Garnacho of Manchester United are the nominees for the Kopa Trophy, which is given to the finest men's young player of the year. Emiliano Martinez of Aston Villa, who took home the Yashin Trophy as the finest goalkeeper the previous year, was once again considered for the honor.
Pep Guardiola, meanwhile, was nominated for men's coach of the year following Manchester City's second Premier League title. On October 28, there will be an event in Paris to announce the winners.
Jude Bellingham, a Real Madrid and England player Ruben Dias, a Manchester City and Portugal native Phil Foden, Manchester City, and England Federico Valverde of Real Madrid and Uruguay Emiliano Martinez, both with Aston Villa and Argentina Erling Haaland of Manchester City and Norway Nico Williams (Athletic Bilbao and Spain) Granit Xhaka (Bayer Leverkusen and Switzerland) Artem Dovbyk (Roma and Ukraine) Real Madrid and former Germany player Toni Kroos Vinicius Jr. of Real Madrid and Brazil Dani Olmo (Barcelona and Spain) Florian Wirtz (Bayer Leverkusen, Germany) Arsenal's and Norway's Martin Odegaard Mats Hummels, a free agent from Germany Rodri (Manchester City and Spain)
Harry Kane (England and Bayern Munich) Declan Rice (England and Arsenal) Vitinha (Portugal and Paris St-Germain) Cole Palmer (England and Chelsea) Dani Carvajal (Spain and Real Madrid) Lamine Yamal (Spain and Barcelona) Bukayo Saka (England and Arsenal) Hakan Calhanoglu (Turkey and Inter Milan) William Saliba (France and Arsenal) Kylian Mbappe (France and Real Madrid) Lautaro Martinez (Argentina and Inter Milan) Ademola Lookman (Nigeria and Atalanta) Antonio Rudiger (Germany and Real Madrid) Alejandro Grimaldo (Spain and Bayer Leverkusen)
