The attention is directed this evening, Monday, to the "Duchâtel" theater in the French capital, Paris, where "France Football" magazine will announce the winner of the Ballon d'Or for Best Player in the World for 2023. Argentine star Lionel Messi is expected to gift his country its eighth Ballon d'Or, leading it to become the country with the most wins of this prestigious award.
Currently, five countries top the list of the most victories, each with seven Ballon d'Or wins: Argentina, Germany, France, the Netherlands, and Portugal. Messi is the only player to have given all of his Ballon d'Ors to his country, while the other countries achieved their seven awards from different players.
Former Liberian forward George Weah is the only African player to have won the Ballon d'Or, claiming it in 1995. "France Football" awarded the Ballon d'Or for the best player in Europe between 1956 and 1994, then for the best European player between 1995 and 2006, and for the best player in the world starting in 2007.
Below is the list of countries that have won the Ballon d'Or since the award was launched in 1956:
- Germany: 7 Ballon d'Ors won by 5 players: Franz Beckenbauer, Karl-Heinz Rummenigge, Gerd Müller, Lothar Matthäus, and Matthias Sammer.
- Netherlands: 7 Ballon d'Ors won by 3 players: Johan Cruyff (3 times), Ruud Gullit (once), and Marco van Basten (3 times).
- Portugal: 7 Ballon d'Ors won by 3 players: Eusébio (once), Luís Figo (once), and Cristiano Ronaldo (5 times).
- France: 7 Ballon d'Ors won by 5 players: Raymond Kopa (once), Michel Platini (3 times), Jean-Pierre Papin (once), Zinedine Zidane (once), and Karim Benzema (once).
- Argentina: 7 Ballon d'Ors won by Lionel Messi.
- Italy: 5 Ballon d'Ors won by 5 players: Omar Sivori, Gianni Rivera, Paolo Rossi, Roberto Baggio, and Fabio Cannavaro.
- Brazil: 5 Ballon d'Ors won by 4 players: Ronaldo (twice), Rivaldo (once), Ronaldinho (once), and Kaká (once).
- England: 5 Ballon d'Ors won by 4 players: Stanley Matthews (once), Bobby Charlton (once), Kevin Keegan (twice), and Michael Owen (once).
- Soviet Union: 3 Ballon d'Ors won by 3 players: Oleg Blokhin, Igor Belanov, and Lev Yashin.
- Spain: 3 Ballon d'Ors won by 2 players: Alfredo Di Stéfano (twice) and Luis Suárez Miramontes (once).
Ten countries have won the Ballon d'Or once: Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Czechoslovakia, Denmark, Hungary, Liberia, Northern Ireland, Scotland, and Ukraine.
