Ballon d’Or 2022 finalists: No Lionel Messi as nominees list for men’s & women’s awards, Kopa and Yashin trophy are unveiled
The construction of the 2022 Ballon d’Or officially began on August 12 with the announcement of the finalists for each of the four main prizes. Record seven-time winner Lionel Messi and his teammate Neymar were not on the list. The ceremony to announce the winners will take place on October 17th.
The PSG Argentinian star controversially won the award last year but he was not among the 30 players set to compete for the men’s Ballon d’Or this time. Real Madrid’s Karim Benzema is a popular favorite given his exploits with his club in winning La Liga and the UEFA Champions League. The struggle for women’s honor should become more open.
Prestigious French publication France Football, which has hosted the awards and overseen voting since 1956, unveiled the full list of names for the four main prizes, including the top two Ballon d’Or trophies – best male and female player – along with the Kopa Trophy for Best Young Player and Yashin Trophy for Best Male Goalkeeper.
The award has changed a lot after Messi’s controversial win over Robert Lewandowski in 2021. In March 2022, France Football announced that player performances would be taken into account from the season and not from the calendar year. Also, media voters are now limited to the top 100 countries in the FIFA Men’s Ranking and the top 50 nations in the Women’s Ranking.
In addition, the voting criteria have been updated to eliminate consideration of overall career performance and instead focus on three main factors:
- Individual service in the pre-season (no longer by calendar year)
- Team success last season
- Player behavior and fair play taken into account during the season
Below is a breakdown of the finalists for each 2022 award along with their club affiliation and national team.
MORE: Who will win the 2022 Ballon d’Or?
How are the Ballon d’Or nominees selected?
According to France Football, the list of candidates is an amalgamation of lists from three main sources.
The candidates, compiled by journalists from France Football and L’Equipe, are combined with those of former great Didier Drogba, considered Ballon d’Or ambassador.
Additionally, as part of the new process, the list of nominees from last edition media voters who submitted a ballot matching the final vote were added: Vietnamese journalist Truong Anh Ngoc and New Zealander Gordon Watson. Czech journalist Karolina Hlavackova has added her list of finalists for the Women’s Ballon d’Or to the France Football/L’Equipe list.
When will the Ballon d’Or 2022 ceremony take place?
Now that the lists are in place, the voting process begins.
Following the 2021 trophy controversy, France Football made it clear that the 66th edition will be new, with a “tighter voting body and clearer rules”.
This more rigorous media voting body will only consist of journalists from the top 100 nations in the men’s FIFA World Ranking for the men’s awards and media from the top 50 nations in the FIFA women’s world rankings who will vote for the women’s awards.
The prestigious awards will be presented in a glamorous ceremony at the Theater du Chatelet in Paris on October 17th.
MORE: Voting results that determined 2021 Ballon d’Or rankings
Ballon d’Or finalists 2022 (men)
There are 30 finalists and Messi’s absence from the list grabs everyone’s headlines. It is the first time since 2005 that he will not stand for election. He finished in the top three 13 times between 2006 and 2021.
The new guidelines for the award – individual performance as the main criterion and career success no longer a factor – are believed to be the main reason why Messi doesn’t find himself among the top 30 players in the world.
Messi won the Ballon d’Or for the seventh time last year and together with superstar Cristiano Ronaldo they have shared 12 of the last 13 Ballon d’Or trophies. Ronaldo did it in 2022 and now has 18 Ballon d’Or nominations compared to Messi’s 15.
MORE: Why Messi’s 2021 Ballon d’Or was a blatant snub from Lewandowski
| Surname | position | association | National team |
| Trent Alexander Arnold | DF | Liverpool | England |
| Karim Benzema | fw | real Madrid | France |
| João Cancelo | DF | Manchester City | Portugal |
| Casemiro | MF | real Madrid | Brazil |
| Thibaut Courtois | GC | real Madrid | Belgium |
| Cristiano Ronaldo | fw | Manchester United | Portugal |
| Kevin De Bruyne | MF | Manchester City | Belgium |
| Luis Diaz | fw | Porto / Liverpool | Colombia |
| Fabinho | MF | Liverpool | Brazil |
| Phil Foden | fw | Manchester City | England |
| Erling Haland | fw | Borussia Dortmund (now Manchester City) |
Norway |
| Sebastian Haller | fw | ajax (now Borussia Dortmund) |
Ivory Coast |
| Harry Kane | fw | Tottenham Hotspur | England |
| Joshua Kimmich | MF | Bayern Munich | Germany |
| Rafael Leao | fw | AC Milan | Portugal |
| Robert Lewandowski | fw | Bayern Munich (now Barcelona) |
Poland |
| Riyadh Mahrez | fw | Manchester City | Algeria |
| Mike Maignan | GC | AC Milan | France |
| sadio mane | fw | Liverpool (now Bayern Munich) |
Senegal |
| Kylian Mbappe | fw | PSG | France |
| Luke Modric | MF | real Madrid | Croatia |
| Christopher Nunku | fw | RB Leipzig | France |
| Darwin Nunez | fw | Benfica (now Liverpool) |
Uruguay |
| Antonio Ruediger | DF | Chelsea (now Real Madrid) | Germany |
| Mohammed Salah | fw | Liverpool | Egypt |
| Bernhard Silva | MF | Manchester City | Portugal |
| son Heung-min | fw | Tottenham Hotspur | South Korea |
| Virgil van Dijk | DF | Liverpool | Netherlands |
| Vinicius Jr | fw | real Madrid | Brazil |
| Dusan Wlahovic | fw | Fiorentina/Juventus | Serbia |
Ballon d’Or Finalists 2022 (Women)
There are 20 nominees for the women’s award, including Chelsea’s Aussie star Sam Kerr, who became the first player to land on the cover of EA Sports’ FIFA 23. She joins three Americans including Champions League winner Catarina Macario and rising star Trinity Rodman, who was a key figure in the Washington Spirit’s NWSL title run.
Also on the list are three members of England’s Euro 2022-winning side, including tournament MVP Beth Mead. Second place Germany has two representatives on the list.
Last year’s winner Alexia Putellas is expected to be in contention for the 2022 award after guiding Barcelona to the Champions League final and La Liga title. Missing Euro 2022 with a knee injury could hurt her chances.
MORE: Who will win the 2022 women’s Ballon d’Or?
| Surname | position | association | National team |
| Selma Bacha | DF | Lyons | France |
| Aitana Bonmati | MF | Barcelona | Spain |
| Millie Hell | DF | Chelsea | England |
| Lucy Bronze | DF | Manchester City (now Barcelona) |
England |
| Kadidiatou Diani | fw | PSG | France |
| Christian Endler | GC | Lyons | Chile |
| Adam Hegerberg | fw | Lyons | Norway |
| Marie Antoinette Katoto | fw | PSG | France |
| Sam Kerr | fw | Chelsea | Australia |
| Catarina Makario | MF/FW | Lyons | United States of America |
| Beth Met | fw | arsenal | England |
| Vivianne Miedema | fw | arsenal | Netherlands |
| Alex Morgan | fw | Orlando Pride (now San Diego Wave) |
United States of America |
| Lena Oberdorf | MF | Vfl Wolfsburg | Germany |
| Asat Oshoala | fw | Barcelona | Nigeria |
| Alexandra Popp | fw | Vfl Wolfsburg | Germany |
| Alexia Putellas | MF | Barcelona | Spain |
| Wendie Renard | DF | Lyons | France |
| Trinity Rodman | fw | Washington spirit | United States of America |
| Fridolina Rolfo | fw | Barcelona | Sweden |
Finalists of the Kopa Trophy 2022
Six players are on the shortlist for the second year in a row, but a glaring omission is last year’s winner, Pedri. According to France Football, he did not have enough appearances to warrant a place on the list. He only made 12 appearances in La Liga and 10 in other club competitions.
It is noteworthy that half of the nominees work in the German Bundesliga.
| Surname | position | association | National team |
| Karim Adeyemi | fw | Borussia Dortmund | Germany |
| Jude Bellingham | MF | Borussia Dortmund | England |
| Eduardo Camavinga | MF | real Madrid | France |
| Gavi | MF | Barcelona | Spain |
| Ryan Graverberch | MF | ajax | Netherlands |
| Josko Gvardiol | DF | RB Leipzig | Croatia |
| Nuno Mendes | DF | PSG | Portugal |
| Jamal Musiala | MF | Bayern Munich | Germany |
| Bukayo Saka | fw | arsenal | England |
| Florian Wirz | MF | Bayer Leverkusen | Germany |
Yashin Trophy 2022 finalists
This trophy appears to bear the name of Thibaut Courtois after being Man of the Match in the UEFA Champions League final against Liverpool.
There are five new faces on the list compared to last year: Mike Maignan (AC Milan), Yassine Bounou (Seville), 2019 winner Alisson (Liverpool), Hugo Lloris (Tottenham) and Kevin Trapp (Eintracht Frankfurt).
Maignan was credited as a key player in AC Milan’s unexpected rise to Serie A title-holders, while Kevin Trapp played a key role in Eintracht Frankfurt’s Europa League triumph.
| Surname | position | association | National team |
| Alsson Becker | GC | Liverpool | Brazil |
| Yassine Bounou | GC | Seville | Morocco |
| Thibaut Courtois | GC | real Madrid | Belgium |
| Ederson | GC | Manchester City | Brazil |
| Hugo Lloris | GC | Tottenham Hotspur | France |
| Mike Maignan | GC | AC Milan | France |
| Edouard Mendy | GC | Chelsea | Senegal |
| Manuel Neuer | GC | Bayern Munich | Germany |
| Jan Oblak | GC | Atlético Madrid | Slovenia |
| Kevin Trap | GC | Eintracht Frankfurt | Germany |