Since its inception in 1956, 48 footballers have won the prestigious ‘Ballon d'Or’ throughout the history of football.

However, only one of them managed to do so at the age of 21.

The record for the youngest winner of the Ballon d'Or belongs to none other than Ronaldo Nazário.

The Brazilian striker won the award in 1997 at the age of 21 years and 92 days, after beating Predrag Mijatović and Zinédine Zidane in the vote.

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The season that decided the vote

Ronaldo’s victory in the 1997 edition was based on his performances both at club level and for the Brazilian national team during that calendar year:

- FC Barcelona: He scored 47 goals in 49 matches during the 1996–97 season and won the Copa del Rey, the Spanish Super Cup and the European Cup Winners’ Cup.

- Inter Milan: Following his transfer in the summer of 1997 for a record fee at the time, he maintained his goal-scoring form during his first few months in Italy.

- Brazil national team: He won the 1997 Copa América, a tournament in which he was named Player of the Tournament.

Here are the results of the 1997 ‘Ballon d'Or’ vote:

  1. Ronaldo Nazário

  2. Predrag Mijatović

  3. Zinédine Zidane

  4. Dennis Bergkamp

  5. Roberto Carlos

  6. Andreas Möller

  7. Raúl

  8. Peter Schmeichel

  9. Jürgen Kohler

  10. Christian Vieri – Matthias Sammer

Ballon d'Or’s Youngest Winners Ranking

Throughout the tournament’s history, only five footballers have managed to lift the trophy before turning 24.

Below, we take a look at the youngest players to have won the Ballon d'Or since its inception in 1956:

  1. Ronaldo Nazário: 21 years and 92 days

  2. Michael Owen: 22 years and 4 days

  3. Lionel Messi: 22 years and 160 days

  4. George Best: 22 years and 212 days

  5. Oleg Blokhin: 23 years and 55 days

No one has come close

Since that golden year of 1997, no footballer has surpassed the record set by Ronaldo Nazário.

Players such as Michael Owen in 2001 and Lionel Messi in 2009 also won the award at a young age.

However, the Brazilian striker’s record remains the youngest in history to this day.

Will anyone dethrone him in 2026?

We’ll find out on 26 October in London.