Every Man City Ballon d'Or winner ever

By 90min | Created at 2024-10-29 21:33:03 | Updated at 2024-11-05 10:33:43 1 week ago

It's hard to believe that Manchester City found themselves languishing in the third tier just before the turn of the century.

Now the eight-time Premier League winners are arguably the world's greatest side under Pep Guardiola following almost two decades of significant investment. They have been English, European and world champions in recent years, with their success forged by some truly generational footballers.

The likes of David Silva, Vincent Kompany and Sergio Aguero have come and gone, replaced by a new wave of superstars from across the world. As a result, Man City often find themselves with a handful of nominees come the Ballon d'Or ceremony each year.

However, being nominated and winning football's most prestigious individual prize are two completely different propositions, especially in an era where Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo have dominated the list of champions.

Here is every player who has won the Ballon d'Or with Man City.

Rodri became the first Manchester City player to win the Ballon d'Or in 2024 / Pascal Le Segretain/GettyImages

Vinicius Junior was the favourite to get his hands on the 2024 Ballon d'Or, but voters drifted in a different direction and turned to Rodri, who became Manchester City's first-ever winner of the award. The Spaniard was once again hugely influential at the base of the Cityzens' midfield as Guardiola's side claimed their fourth-straight Premier League title.

Rodri lost just a single game of club football in 2023/24 - the FA Cup final to Manchester United - and his winning fetish continued into the summer as he was crowned Player of the Tournament at Euro 2024 while starring in the middle of the park for a triumphant Spain team.

While Rodri is the first player to claim the prize while representing Man City at the time of his success, two former City players are also Ballon d'Or winners. Denis Law may be heralded as a Manchester United hero but the Scotland international - who won the Ballon d'Or while playing for the Red Devils in 1964 - also donned the sky blue of the Cityzens on two separate occasions.

There was also George Weah in 1995, who claimed the prize five years before a permanent move to Man City. With nationality restrictions having been removed that year, Weah became the first non-European to win the award, with the Liberian representing AC Milan at the time. He remains the only African player to have scooped the accolade.

While a slightly tenuous link, two-time Ballon d'Or winner Kevin Keegan did manage Man City from 2001 to 2005. The former Cityzens coach won the award in 1978 and 1979 during his days with Hamburg in Germany.

Man City players who have finished in the Ballon d'Or top three

Kevin De Bruyne came close in 2022 / ALAIN JOCARD/GettyImages

Excluding 2024 winner Rodri, only two players have finished in the Ballon d'Or top three vote while playing for Man City. The first was Kevin De Bruyne in 2022 who was comfortably beaten to the prize by former Real Madrid striker Karim Benzema. The Frenchman finished a whopping 356 points ahead of runner-up Sadio Mane.

The following year, Man City were dealt another Ballon d'Or blow, this one much more controversial. Erling Haaland had dazzled with 52 goals in 53 appearances for Man City in all competitions during his debut season, helping the club win a historic treble with his incredible sharpshooting.

However, after winning the FIFA World Cup in Qatar at the end of 2022, Lionel Messi claimed a record-extending eighth Ballon d'Or after beating Haaland by 105 points. The Argentine's popularity helped him topple the Norwegian, who did at least win the Gerd Muller Trophy as a consolation prize.