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Ten years after his last recognition by France Football, Cristiano Ronaldo is once again in contention this year as one of the nominees to be named the B.O.A.T., the Ballon d'Or of All Time.
The awkwardly titled award is a newly introduced category launched by the French publication to celebrate the prize's 70th anniversary. The premise is straightforward: "Which was the ultimate golden year?"
Supporters are invited to cast their votes for the greatest individual-year performance by any multiple Ballon d'Or winner throughout the award's history. Was Ronaldo's 2017 victory superior to Lionel Messi's 2015? And what about earlier eras — should Michel Platini's 1984 rank above Johan Cruyff's triumph from a decade prior?
This is the question put to anyone willing to spend €1 ($1.12) to vote on the official Ballon d'Or website.
Full List of Contenders for the B.O.A.T.
In terms of sheer numbers, no player has ever dominated a Ballon d'Or vote more convincingly than Messi in 2009. Of the 96 judges, 90 placed the diminutive talisman of Pep Guardiola's unstoppable Barcelona side in first position. A perfect score at that year's ceremony would have been 480 points, and Messi walked away with an impressive tally of 473.
Michel Platini's outstanding performances for France at the 1984 European Championships also earned him near-universal recognition, while the more recent case of Karim Benzema was broadly regarded as a deserving winner in 2022.
Yet few players have ever combined power and elegance quite like Ronaldo Nazário did in 1997. The then-21-year-old swept aside all competition during his debut season at Barcelona, blazing his way to becoming the youngest-ever Ballon d'Or recipient.
Ranking Cristiano Ronaldo's Ballon d'Or Wins
Cristiano Ronaldo in Manchester United blue. pic.twitter.com/VrZW311vUk
A strong case can be made that Ronaldo reached his peak during his second-to-last season at Manchester United. The lethal spearhead of Sir Alex Ferguson's final great side played a pivotal role in the club's Premier League title win — breaking the single-season scoring record — while also netting in a victorious Champions League final against Chelsea.
Ronaldo was perhaps most fulfilled eight years later, when he guided Portugal to the national team's first-ever major honor at Euro 2016. "I have cried three or four times already and my brother had to tell me to calm down. And I said: 'Hugo, I can't,'" the skipper gushed following the final.
"It's true, from the bottom of my heart, I swear on my son's life, I am so very, very, very happy. I could repeat this 100 times. I am so happy. This is the trophy that was missing."
The Ballon d'Or has been absent from Ronaldo's trophy collection since 2017, but that could all change this year.