In a recent development, it has now been confirmed that there will no Ballon d’Or winner in 2020, with France Football announcing the prestigious event will not happen in this calendar year owing to the “lack of sufficient fair conditions.”

Notably, a prestigious golden ball has been given to the best player on the planet since 1956, however, it has been decided that it would not be right to pick out the best player owing to the circumstances in which sports is happening this year.

Advertisement

This in effect implies that the 2019 Ballon d’Or Winner Messi will keep his crown for another year. While the Barcelona ace has won a record six trophies, his rival Cristiano Ronaldo boasts of five such trophies.

While both of them were expected to be in contention once again in 2020, the likes of Robert Lewandowski and Kevin De Bruyne had also impressed with their remarkable performances this year.

Meanwhile, United States star Megan Rapinoe is also set to keep hold of her title in the women’s game.

“For the first time in its history, which began in 1956, the Ballon d’Or will not be awarded in 2020, due to the lack of sufficient fair conditions,” France Football said in an official statement.

“Messi and Rapinoe (as well as [Mattijs] de Ligt and Alisson, winners of the Kopa and Yachine Trophies [for young player and goalkeeper]) will have to wait a year. The winners of the last edition will have no successors at the end of the year. Because there will be no Ballon d’Or 2020 edition.

“Why? Because such a singular year cannot – and should not – be treated as an ordinary year. When in doubt, it is better to abstain than to persist.

“Because the Ballon d’Or trophy conveys other values – like exemplarity, solidarity and responsibility – rather than merely sporting excellence alone.

“Because the fairness that prevails for this honorary title could not be preserved, in particular at the statistical level and also in the preparation since all the aspirants to the award could not be rightly compared, some having seen their season cut radically short, others not. So how can we compare the incomparable?

“Because of our approximately 220 jurors (men and women combined) distributed around the world, some may have been distracted or diverted from their observation due to other priorities and emergencies to manage.

“We did not want to put an indelible asterisk on the prize list like “trophy won in exceptional circumstances due to the Covid-19 health crisis”. We will always prefer a small sprain to our history to a large scar.

“This is the first time since 1956 that the Ballon d’Or has taken a break. The situation does not enchant us but seems to us the most responsible and logical decision. Protecting the credibility and legitimacy of such an award also means protecting it over time.

“The Ballon d’Or story is too precious to take the risk of damaging it with a wobbly exercise. In these turbulent times, taking a break is a luxury and an invaluable necessity. So that football, as a whole, regains momentum, passion and emotion.”