Discontent surrounded Cristiano Ronaldo after he failed to get nominated for the 2023 Ballon d’Or. It was the first time in over two decades that he wasn’t present for the prestigious trophy as he saw his long-term rival, Lionel Messi, collect his record eighth title. It seems the Portuguese superstar finally has a chance to contest for an individual award among global soccer stars, as he has managed to make the cut for the 2023 IFFHS World’s Best Player Award. 

However, this nomination has stirred up a lot of debate in the soccer world after knowing that he hasn’t won a single silverware this year.  

Cristiano Ronaldo makes it to the list of IFFHS World’s Best Player Award 

Yesterday, the International Federation of Football History and Statistics (IFFHS) announced the nominees for the 2023 World’s Best Player Award. On the 25-man list, one of the surprise names is Cristiano Ronaldo. While there’s no doubt about the Portuguese skipper’s caliber to make it onto this list, it’s the player’s lack of silverware that is raising a few eyebrows. Although Ronaldo helped Al Nassr win their first Arab Club Champions Cup earlier this year, the Arab Champions Cup isn’t recognized as an official competition by FIFA.

Other players have won much more in the year and haven’t made the cut. Notably, the skipper has scored 49 goals in the 2023 calendar year. In fact, with this number, he is competing with European talents like Erling Haaland and Kylian Mbappe. While it’s doubtful whether this individual milestone will help him clinch the prestigious award, it is still considered a remarkable achievement for Ronaldo. Nevertheless, let’s take a look at other stars with whom he’ll be competing against. 

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The full list of IFFHS’ World’s Best Player Award 

Aside from Ronaldo, Lionel Messi, Erling Haaland, Kylian Mbappe, and Jude Bellingham are the obvious names. Aside from this, Vinicius Junior, Kevin De Bruyne, Mohamed Salah, Bruno Fernandes, Harry Kane, Lautaro Martinez, and Antoine Griezmann are among a few names as well. Notably, Messi, Bellingham, and De Bryune also made the cut on the Best Playmaker Award list.

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In fact, Bellingham is also nominated for best youth player. Additionally, the likes of Marc-Andre Ter Stegen, Thibaut Courtois, Emiliano Martinez, Gianluigi Donnarumma, Jan Oblak, and Andre Onana were nominated for the best goalkeeper award.

What are your predictions? Let us know in the comments below.

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