Messi 1st, Haaland 2nd: The Ballon d’Or Top 30 IN FULL

Cameron Smith

• Updated: 30 Oct 2023 21:44 GMT
• 5 min read

The 2023 Ballon d'Or ceremony is here and Lionel Messi has won his record eighth Ballon d'Or award.

Karim Benzema was the reigning Ballon d'Or holder, but the French striker did not retain the award after finishing 16th in the 2023 edition.

READ MORE: Who will win Ballon d’Or 2023? Shortlist, favourites, latest odds, date and past winners

After long being considered the favourite, Inter Miami's Lionel Messi took the 2023 prize after a fabulous season with Paris Saint-Germain, but more importantly, after guiding Argentina to World Cup glory in December 2022.

Below, FootballTransfers runs through the 2023 Ballon d'Or top 30 list in full...

Ballon d'Or 2023 Ranking

Manchester City defender Ruben Dias was the first player to be listed in the top 30 as he was revealed to have finished in 30th place for the 2023 Ballon d'Or.

The Portugal international played a key role as Pep Guardiola's side romped to an historic treble, but his performances were only good enough for 30th place.

Paris Saint-Germain forward Randal Kolo Muani and Arsenal midfielder Martin Odegaard finished in joint-28th place, ahead of Inter Milan star Nicolo Barella (27th).

Kolo Muani had a brilliant year at Eintracht Frankfurt, which earned him a €90 million summer move to PSG, while Odegaard helped Arsenal come within touching distance of the Premier League title.

As for Barella, he was an important member of the Inter side that reached the 2023 Champions League final.

Jamal Musiala (Bayern) finished in 26th place after scoring 16 goals and providing 16 assists in all competitions during the 2022-23 season. He also netted the goal that sealed Bayern yet another Bundesliga title in May.

Josko Gvardiol was ranked in 25th place after a stellar final campaign at RB Leipzig. His form in the Bundesliga (and for Croatia at the World Cup) earned a big-money summer move to Guardiola's Man City.

In 24th place was Bukayo Saka. The Arsenal and England star enjoyed a fantastic season under Mikel Arteta, contributing 15 goals and 11 assists in 48 appearances for the Gunners in 2022-23.

New Manchester United goalkeeper Andre Onana finished in 23rd place. The Cameroon shot-stopper may have endured a tricky start to life at Old Trafford, but he was excellent for Inter as they reached the 2022-23 Champions League final.

Kim Min-jae finished 22nd after helping Napoli win the Scudetto for the first time since 1990. He joined Bayern Munich this summer after a brilliant campaign in Naples.

In 21st place was Atletico Madrid forward Antoine Griezmann. The France star netted 16 goals and provided 19 assists on his return to Atleti last season, and he also played a key role in France's run to the 2022 World Cup final.

Lautaro Martinez had a season to remember in 2022-23 as he helped Argentina win the World Cup in Qatar, as well as scoring 30 goals in all competitions for Inter. He also bagged 11 assists and he finished 20th in the Ballon d'Or 2023 rankings.

Harry Kane finished in 19th after a mega final season at Tottenham. He joined Bayern Munich this summer after netting 30 Premier League goals in 2022-23.

England wonderkid Jude Bellingham came 18th; his form for Real Madrid does not count towards the 2023 award, but he was Borussia Dortmund's best player last season and his performances convinced voters to place him inside the top 20.

Khvicha Kvaratskhelia finished 17th after he emerged onto the scene with 33 goal contributions in 2022-23, as he helped Napoli win the Serie A title. The Georgian star had joined the side for just €13.3m before the season started.

Karim Benzema, the winner of the 2022 Ballon d'Or, placed 16th in this year's edition after he ended his carer in Europe before joining Al-Ittihad. The Frenchman scored 31 goals and provided six assists in his final season at Real Madrid.

Emiliano Martinez finished 15th after helping Argentina win the World Cup, ahead of treble-winner Ilkay Gundogan, who placed 14th.

The pair were surprisingly beaten by Yassine Bounou (13th), who played a key role in Morocco's impressive World Cup campaign and Sevilla's Europa League triumph.

Barcelona's Robert Lewandowski finished 12th after continuing his fine goal-scoring form following his move from Bayern Munich, while Mohamed Salah just missed out on the top 10. The Liverpool man came 11th.

2018 Ballon d'Or winner Luka Modric came in 10th as he continues to age like a fine wine, while Bernardo Silva, a key part in Man City's treble-winning side, finished 9th.

Napoli goalscoring machine Victor Osimhen finished 8th after firing his team to their first Serie A title in 33 years. Man City stars Julian Alvarez and Rodri came 7th and 5th respectively, with Real Madrid's Vinicius Jr sandwiched between in 6th. The Brazilian had earlier claimed the Socrates Trophy for his charity and anti-racism work.

Another one of Man City's treble heroes, Kevin de Bruyne, came fourth. Kylian Mbappe and Erling Haaland took second and third place respectively, with Lionel Messi - once again - standing atop the podium as football's greatest individual performer of the year for a record eighth time.

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