The 70th Ballon d'Or is being held in London, the shortlist will be announced on September 8

The countdown to the 70th edition of the Ballon d'Or, football's most prestigious individual award, has begun. The grand award ceremony will be held in London, England, on October 26. The coveted golden ball will be awarded to the best player in world football. However, before that, the much-awaited shortlist for each category will be released on September 8.

As this year's Ballon d'Or approaches, the excitement is also increasing. The voting process will begin after the shortlist is released. Football fans will be the first to see the shortlist on the official website of the Ballon d'Or.

This year's winner in the men's category will be the 70th champion in the history of the Ballon d'Or. The winner in the women's category will be the eighth. In addition, the best young player, goalkeeper, club and coach of the last season will also be awarded at the ceremony.

How the vote will be held

After the shortlist is released, a global jury consisting of football expert journalists from different countries of the world will be responsible for voting. One journalist from each of the top 100 FIFA countries for men and one from each of the top 50 countries for women will vote.

Voters will consider three main factors – individual performance and influence, team achievements and trophies, and sportsmanship on and off the field.

Each voter will choose their top 10 players from the shortlist in order. The first-choice player will receive 15 points, followed by the tenth player in descending order, receiving 1 point. After all votes are counted, the player with the highest number of points will be the winner of the Ballon d’Or.

This time, the Ballon d’Or will go to London, not Paris

The Ballon d’Or has been held at the famous Théâtre du Châtelet in Paris since 2019. However, the venue will change for the 70th edition. This time, the ceremony will be held in the English capital, London.

There is a special reason behind this, which is connected to the history of the Ballon d’Or. The first winner of the award was England legend Sir Stanley Matthews. So hosting the 70th edition in London is seen as a special tribute to him.

Matthews, known as the ‘Wizard of Dribbling’, was one of the icons of English football and an extraordinary ambassador of the game. After winning the first Ballon d’Or in 1956, he accepted his Golden Ball at Blackpool Town Hall.

The ceremony was quite simple. He was awarded in a wood-paneled room. The mayor of the town even arranged a commemorative china plate to commemorate the memorable moment.

Seven decades after the small-scale event of the first edition, the Ballon d’Or is now one of the world’s most talked-about sports awards. And for its 70th edition, the award, whose first winner was England’s Stanley Matthews, is returning to London.