Cristiano Ronaldo’s selection as the greatest Ballon d’Or winner in history has prompted controversy after details of the voting process were revealed.
France Football announced on Wednesday that the Portugal captain had won its BOAT award, recognising the best player among those to have received the Ballon d’Or. Ronaldo was honoured for his 2008 victory, which he achieved while playing for Manchester United.
He finished ahead of long-time rival Lionel Messi, whose 2012 Ballon d’Or success with Barcelona placed him second in the vote.
However, the process used to determine the winner has been criticised after Spanish newspaper Marca, citing France Football, reported that supporters could vote more than once by paying one euro for each vote.
According to the details reported, 5,009 people voted more than once. Of those, 4,665 cast between two and four votes, while 300 people voted between five and nine times. A further 44 people voted between 10 and 26 times.
The voting system enabled fans to support their preferred Ballon d’Or winner, and Marca said France Football generated a substantial amount of money through the votes submitted for the award.
The outcome has particularly angered Messi supporters, who believe the Argentina forward should have won recognition for his 2012 edition. Messi scored 91 goals during that year, a figure cited by his fans in arguing that his achievement was more deserving of the honour.
The award compares the greatest individual Ballon d’Or-winning campaigns rather than naming the overall player with the most victories. Ronaldo’s 2008 triumph was therefore placed above Messi’s 2012 success in the public vote.
Messi remains the most decorated player in Ballon d’Or history, having won the award eight times. Ronaldo has received it on five occasions.
The controversy centres on the voting arrangements rather than the two players’ official Ballon d’Or records. France Football’s announcement confirmed Ronaldo as the winner of the BOAT vote, while the reported option to submit multiple paid votes has led to questions about how representative the result was.