Lionel Messi has won eight Ballon d’Or awards. Cristiano Ronaldo has five. Between them, they dominated soccer’s biggest individual prize for more than a decade. Yet neither can claim one particular distinction: becoming its youngest-ever winner.
As the 2026 Ballon d’Or ceremony approaches, with the awards being presented in London on Monday, October 26, the spotlight is once again on soccer’s established superstars and emerging talents.
And one record, set almost three decades ago, is still waiting to be broken.
Who is the youngest Ballon d’Or winner ever?
The answer is Ronaldo Nazáriothe Brazilian phenomenon affectionately known as The Phenomenon.
In 1997, Ronaldo claimed his first Ballon d’Or at just 21 years old, becoming the youngest player in the award’s history.
And what a year he had enjoyed.
During the 1996-97 season, the electrifying striker scored an astonishing 47 goals in 49 games for Barcelonawinning the Copa del Rey and European Cup Winners’ Cup before moving to Inter Milan.
He also helped Brazil win the 1997 Copa América.
His performances were so extraordinary that he finished comfortably ahead of Real Madrid’s Predrag Mijatović and French midfielder Zinedine Zidane in the Ballon d’Or voting.
Ronaldo would collect a second award in 2002but his youthful achievement remains unmatched.
Could Lamine Yamal break Ronaldo’s Ballon d’Or record?
Messi came closest among the game’s modern greats, winning his first Ballon d’Or in 2009 at 22. England’s Michael Owen was even younger when he claimed the 2001 prize, just four days after his 22nd birthday.
Cristiano Ronaldo, meanwhile, was 23 when he won his first in 2008.
Now Barcelona sensation Lamine Yamal has an opportunity to rewrite the record books.
The Spanish winger, among the nominees for the 2026 awardturned 19 in July. Victory in London would make him the first teenager ever to win the men’s Ballon d’Or.
Who is the oldest player to win the Ballon d’Or?
Messi won his record eighth Ballon ‘Or at the age of 36. The Argentine had led Argentina to a World Cup triumph in 2022 and he had made an impressive start to life with Inter Miami in MLS.
But Messi is only second in the list of the oldest players to win Ballon d’Or and it’s very unlikely anyone will topple the current record-holder.
The very first Ballon d’Or, back in 1956, was awarded to English forward Stanley Matthews. He was 41 at the time of the award but was still starring for his beloved Blackpool in the top tier of English soccer. He narrowly defeated Real Madrid legend Alfredo Di Stefano in the inaugural edition of the award.
Fittingly, this year’s ceremony takes place in England in tribute to Matthews, 70 years after his historic triumph.
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