The 68th edition of the Ballon d’Or ceremony takes place on Monday night, with the likes of Vinicius Jr and Rodri in contention to get their hands on the coveted prize won by legends such as Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo, Johan Cruyff, Eusebio, George Best and Michel Platini.
The inaugural winner was Sir Stanley Matthews of Blackpool back in 1956 and the award has seen many changes over the years – though it has always been associated with France Football thanks to founders Gabriel Hanot and Jacques Ferran.
2007 saw a tweak which allowed players from all over the world to be eligible when it was previously just Europe, effectively ruling out Pele and Diego Maradona.
But in 1989 France Football created a brand new award that has only ever been in the clutches of one individual. The Super Ballon d’Or was designed to acknowledge the best-performing player from the past 30 years.
And the first and only recipient to this date was none other than Real Madrid legend Alfredo Di Stefano, who scored 308 goals for the club and had a starring role in in five consecutive European Cup wins between 1956 and 1960.
Di Stefano, who played internationally for Spain, Argentina and Colombia, won two Ballon d’Ors in 1957 and 1959 and his Super Ballon d’Or triumph came 30 years after his last gong.
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He beat the likes of Cruyff, Platini and Franz Beckenbauer, with the award voted for both readers, a France Football panel and those who had won the Ballon d’Or more than once.
The trophy, which is similar to the Ballon d’Or but with mini golden balls at the bottom, spent many years in the museum at the Santiago Bernabeu.
In September 2021, as part of a ‘Property from the estate of Alfredo Di Stefano’ event organised by Di Stefano’s family in London, it was auctioned off for £187,500 alongside other iconic memorabilia from his career.
There has been clamour for the award to be handed out for a second time and see Messi follow in Di Stefano’s footsteps.
Featured Image Credit: Getty
Topics: Ballon d’Or, Lionel Messi, Diego Maradona