France Football confirmed on Friday that there will be four changes made to the Ballon d’Or from next season.
Lionel Messi won the award last November, while Alexia Putellas from Barcelona took the women’s edition. The awarding of the men’s award was surrounded in controversy, as many believed that Bayern Munich’s Robert Lewandowski should have won it ahead of the Paris Saint-Germain star.
Due to the uproar France Football, who gained control of the prestigious award in 2016, have announced a number of new changes to the process.
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Firstly, the trophy will be awarded in line with the European season instead of the ceremony taking place in December like before. Another change sees the representatives of the top 100 international teams in the FIFA rankings contribute to the voting for the men’s award, while it’s the first 50 for the women’s.
As well as journalists, who have been the main characters in the decision of naming the winner, former players such as Didier Drogba have been added to the panel to compile a more structured list of nominees.
The most intriguing shakeup is the criteria for deciding the winner. France Football will also take into account not only a player’s individual performance but also their “class” and fair play record.
Perhaps what will affect serial winners Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo the most is a player’s reputation will not be considered when voting for the winner.
France Football clarified that performances in the upcoming FIFA World Cup, taking place in November and December for the first time, will count towards the 2023 award.
