It is now official that French forward Karim Benzema is the Ballon d’Or 2022 winner beating the likes of Mohamed Salah, Kylian Mbappe, Robert Lewandowski and a host of other world class stars to clinch the prize.
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| Real Madrid French forward Karim Benzema (up), Bayern Munich Senegalese forward Sadio Mane (down – left) and Manchester City Belgian midfielder Kevin De Bruyne (down – right). Photos: Benzema – Getty Images via EuroSport, Mane – Alexander Hassenstein/GettyImages via 90min, De Bruyne – Michael Regan/Getty Images via Manchester Evening News |
Following his beautiful 2021/22 season, Benzema was handed the award in Paris, France, at the ceremony which takes place annually.
The France and Real Madrid striker was one of the 30 nominees for the most prestigious individual award in world football.
Neither Lionel Messi of French club Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) nor his teammate Neymar Jr made the list of nominees.
Manchester United Portuguese forward Cristiano Ronaldo ranked 20th, while former Liverpool, now Bayern Munich forward Sadio Mane and PSG forward Kylian Mbappe ranked second and sixth respectively.
The full list of the Ballon d’Or 2022 Final Rankings ⬇️
| Ballon d’Or 2022 | -Final Rankings | -of 30 Football Players |
| Rank | Player | Club |
| 1 | Karim Bemzema | Real Madrid |
| 2 | Sadio Mane | Bayern Munich |
| 3 | Kevin De Bruyne | Manchester City |
| 4 | Robert Lewandowski | Barcelona |
| 5 | Mohamed Salah | Liverpool |
| 6 | Kylian Mbappe | Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) |
| 7 | Thibaut Courtois | Real Madrid |
| 8 | Vinicius Junior | Real Madrid |
| 9 | Luka Modric | Real Madrid |
| 10 | Erling Braut Haaland | Manchester City |
| 11 | Heung-Min Son | Tottenham Hotspur |
| 12 | Riyad Mahrez | Manchester City |
| 13 | Sebastian Haller | Borussia Dortmund |
| 14 | Rafael Leao | AC Milan |
| 14 | Fabinho | Liverpool |
| 16 | Virgil Van Dijk | Liverpool |
| 17 | Susan Vlahovic | Juventus |
| 17 | Luis Diaz | Liverpool |
| 17 | Casemiro | Manchester United |
| 20 | Cristiano Ronaldo | Manchester United |
| 21 | Harry Kane | Tottenham Hotspur |
| 22 | Trent Alexander-Arnold | Liverpool |
| 22 | Bernardo Silva | Manchester City |
| 22 | Phil Foden | Manchester City |
| 25 | Mike Maignan | AC Milan |
| 25 | Darwin Nunez | Liverpool |
| 25 | Joshua Kimmich | Bayern Munich |
| 25 | Christopher Nkunku | RB Leipzig |
| 25 | Joao Cancelo | Manchester City |
| 25 | Antonio Rudiger | Real Madrid |
