The prestigious Ballon d’Or will not be awarded this year for the first time since its inauguration in 1956 because of the coronavirus pandemic that has disrupted the football season throughout the world.

The prestigious Ballon d’Or, voted for by journalists and organised by French magazine France Football, is an annual prize awarded to the best male footballer in the world since 1956. The women’s Ballon d’Or was, however, first awarded in 2018.

“From a sports perspective, two months (January and February), out of the eleven generally required to form an opinion and decide who should lift the trophies, represent far too little to gauge and judge ; without forgetting that the other games were played – or will be played – in unordinary conditions.”