The 2019 Ballon d’Or showdown between Lionel Messi and Virgil van Dijk has been identified as one of the closest finishes in the history of the award.
French sports newspaper L’Équipe revisited five editions in which the eventual winner finished only marginally ahead of the runner-up, highlighting how fine the margins have sometimes been in the prestigious individual award.
The closest contest came in 1996 when Matthias Sammer narrowly defeated Brazilian star Ronaldo.
Sammer finished on 144 points, just one ahead of Ronaldo, who had 143. The German’s triumph came after he helped his country win the European Championship and also secured the Bundesliga title.
Messi’s 2019 victory over Van Dijk also featured among the tightest battles.
Van Dijk entered the contest after playing a key role in Liverpool’s Champions League triumph, while the club also finished second in the Premier League. Messi, meanwhile, had another outstanding domestic campaign, helping Barcelona win La Liga and finishing as the competition’s top scorer.
The Argentine eventually collected 686 points from the voters, with Van Dijk finishing on 679, leaving only seven points between the pair.
Another one-point finish occurred in 1966, when England’s Bobby Charlton edged Eusébio to the prize. Charlton had 81 points compared with the Portuguese forward’s 80 after playing a major role in England’s World Cup triumph.
The 1972 voting produced a three-way contest involving West German stars Franz Beckenbauer, Gerd Müller and Günter Netzer.
Beckenbauer eventually claimed the award with 81 points, while Müller and Netzer both finished on 79. Dutch legend Johan Cruyff followed in fourth place with 73 points.
The 2024 edition also produced a close finish, although the margin was larger than in the previous examples.
Rodri won the award after collecting 1,170 points, while Real Madrid’s Vinícius Júnior finished second with 1,129. Rodri’s success followed Manchester City’s Premier League title and Spain’s European Championship triumph.
Real Madrid had three players among the top four, with Vinícius second, Jude Bellingham third and Dani Carvajal fourth.
The five examples underline how some Ballon d’Or winners have secured the award by extremely narrow margins, with Messi’s seven-point victory over Van Dijk standing out as one of the closest contests in recent history.