There are only three players in history that have scored eight Ballon d’Or nominations by age 26: Cristiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi and now, Kylian Mbappé.
The Frenchman received the landmark nomination for his 2024–25 campaign with Real Madrid. Mbappé scored 44 goals in his debut season in a white shirt, taking home his first-ever European Golden Boot, along with the Pichichi Trophy.
Mbappé’s previous seven nominations came during his days at Monaco and Paris Saint-Germain. The forward was first up for the award in 2017 at just 18 years old. At the time, he was the youngest player to ever be nominated for the honor, a record Lamine Yamal now owns.
The France international has been nominated for the prestigious award every year since, barring 2020 when the award was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, giving him eight nominations at age 26.
Messi and Ronaldo, widely considered the two greatest players of all time, also had eight Ballon d’Or nominations at the same age. No other player in the sport can say the same.
The two legends had already won several Ballon d’Or awards by the time they turned 26, though, something Mbappé cannot say. Although the France international is widely regarded as one of the best players in the world, he has yet to take home the individual honor.
Ronaldo, meanwhile, was 23 when he won his first Ballon d’Or award in 2008. Messi was 22 when he received the prize the following year. Combined, the two players own 13 Ballon d’Or awards.
Despite joining the two icons in the history books, Mbappé will likely have to wait to hear his name called out at the Théâtre du Châtelet. PSG’s Ousmane Dembélé and Barcelona’s Yamal are the two overwhelming favorites to win the 2025 Ballon d’Or.
For all of his impressive goalscoring last season, Mbappé could not help lift Real Madrid to a major trophy, significantly hurting his chances of being crowned the next Ballon d’Or winner.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Kylian Mbappe Matches Messi, Ronaldo With Impressive Ballon d'Or Landmark.