UEFA to co-organize Ballon d'Or awards from 2024

By Can Erozden

UEFA and the Groupe Amaury, a French private media group, have combined forces to co-organize football's most prestigious Ballon d’Or awards ceremony from 2024.

"UEFA and Groupe Amaury, owner of media companies France Football and L'Equipe, have today announced a partnership to co-organise the renowned Ballon d'Or from 2024," the European football's governing body said in a statement on Friday.

"As part of the agreement, Groupe Amaury remains the owner of the Ballon d’Or brand and will continue to oversee the voting system, which will remain unchanged and independent. UEFA will contribute its football expertise, market the global commercial rights and organise the annual awards gala," UEFA said.

Next year, two new awards will be added: a men's and women's coach of the year.

Ballon d'Or awards have been distributed in several categories every year such as Men’s, and Women's Ballon d'Or, and the awards are given to the best player in the world.

Kopa Trophy (The best player under 21 years of age), Yashin Trophy (The best goalkeeper of the year), Gerd Muller Trophy (Top scorer in the previous season), Men's Club of the Season Trophy, Women’s Club of the Season Trophy and Socrates Award (Humanitarian work) were the others that are handed in a Ballon d'Or ceremony.

"The Ballon d'Or is the dream award for the world's greatest players. We want to make the Ballon d'Or Awards Ceremony to be the global event that showcases and highlights the talent of top-level footballers in their individual and collective performances, to inspire all talents in football and aim to bring together the passion and enthusiasm of fans from all over the world," Groupe Amaury CEO Jean-Etienne Amaury said.

Aleksander Ceferin, UEFA president, said that Ballon d'Or has been "the most prestigious individual accolade" in football, and adding that the UEFA Champions League and UEFA EURO finals are the highest club and national team competitions that play critical roles in the players' candidacy for major honors such as the Ballon d'Or.

"UEFA and Ballon d'Or are synonyms of sporting excellence, so our partnership will be a natural blend of prominence and a synergy that promises to be nothing short of exceptional," Ceferin said.

Presented by the French weekly magazine France Football, Ballon d'Or has been awarded since 1956 to the best player of year, and many great names in the game have been honored by it.

On Oct. 30, Inter Miami's Argentine superstar Lionel Messi won the 2023 Men's Ballon d'Or at a ceremony at Paris' Theatre du Chatelet, marking a record eighth win.

Messi, 36, led Argentina to secure the 2022 FIFA World Cup title in Qatar.

Having an illustrious club and national team career, Messi, who is also a four-time UEFA Champions League winner with Barcelona, has brought a World Cup to Argentina last winter that the whole nation had been seeking for 36 years.

It was also a missing puzzle piece of the former Barcelona and Paris Saint-Germain forward.

In addition, Barcelona's Spanish midfielder Aitana Bonmati won the 2023 Women's Ballon d'Or award.

Playing in the center of the park, Bonmati, 25, helped Barca secure the 2023 UEFA Women's Champions League title in June, two months before winning the FIFA Women's World Cup with Spain. She won the World Cup Golden Ball award as well, which is an honor handed to the best player at a World Cup.