Football fans around the world are eagerly awaiting the 2026 Ballon d’Or ceremony, scheduled for Monday, October 26, at the London Palladium, where the best players in the world will be honoured.
This year’s ceremony is particularly special as the prestigious award celebrates its 70th anniversary.
But did you know that two of the greatest footballers ever to grace the pitch, Pele and Diego Maradona, never won the Ballon d’Or?
The Brazilian legend won three World Cups, while Maradona famously inspired Argentina to glory in 1986. Yet neither managed to get their hands on football’s most prestigious individual award.
When French magazine France Football introduced the Ballon d’Or in 1956, the award was exclusively reserved for European footballers playing in Europe.
That meant players from South America, Africa and other parts of the world were not eligible, regardless of how brilliant they were.
Pele, who spent most of his career at Brazilian club Santos, was automatically excluded.
Maradona faced the same problem. Even though he played for European giants Barcelona and Napoli, his Argentine nationality made him ineligible.
Imagine Maradona not being considered for the Ballon d’Or in 1986, the year he almost singlehandedly inspired Argentina to World Cup glory.
Or Pele missing out despite winning three World Cups in 1958, 1962 and 1970.
It was simply down to the rules.
Everything changed in 1995, when the organisers finally opened the award to players of all nationalities representing European clubs.
Liberian striker George Weah became the first player to benefit from the change, winning the Ballon d’Or that year while representing Paris Saint-Germain and AC Milan.
The rules were expanded again in 2007, making footballers playing anywhere in the world eligible.
But by then, both Pele and Maradona had long retired. Yes, although neither won the competitive award.
Maradona received an honorary Ballon d’Or in 1995 in recognition of his extraordinary career.
Pele was also presented with an honorary FIFA Ballon d’Or at the 2013 awards ceremony, held in January 2014.
However, those honours do not count towards the official list of Ballon d’Or winners.
And that remains one of the most fascinating facts in football history.
Lionel Messi, the little magician from Argentina, who recently bid farewell to international football, has won the Ballon d’Or eight times, while Cristiano Ronaldo has claimed it five times.
But Pele and Maradona, two legends who helped define the beautiful game and are still considered the greatest of all time by many football fans, never won a single competitive Ballon d’Or.