Messi and Ronaldo era 'Officially Over' after Ballon d'Or Snub

The era of Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo has officially come to a close, as neither player received a nomination for the Ballon d’Or this year. Instead, Real Madrid’s Vinicius Jr and Jude Bellingham are leading the nominations.

The shortlist for the 2024 Ballon d’Or (The Golden Ball) was revealed on Wednesday, with Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo missing out.

Ballon d’Or shortlist revealed: What occurred?

Real Madrid’s Vinicius Junior and Jude Bellingham are among the top contenders for this year’s prestigious award, alongside Manchester City’s Rodri. The list of 30 nominees features some of the biggest names in football, including Erling Haaland and Kylian Mbappe. However, two of the sport’s most iconic figures, Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi, have been omitted from the shortlist for the first time since 2003.

Ballon d’Or 2024: Full nominees list except Messi and Ronaldo

Jude Bellingham
Ruben Dias
Phil Foden
Federico Valverde
Emiliano Martinez
Nico Williams
Erling Haaland
Toni Kroos
Granit Xhaka
Artem Dovbik
Dani Olmo
Vinicius Jr
Martin Odegaard
Mats Hummels
Florian Wirtz
Harry Kane
Rodri
Declan Rice
Vitinha
Cole Palmer
Lamine Yamal
Dani Carvajal
Bukayo Saka
Hakan Calhanoglu
William Saliba
Kylian Mbappe
Lautaro Martinez
Ademola Lookman
Antonio Rudiger
Alejandro Grimaldo

The winner of the men’s Ballon d’Or will be announced on October 28

Fans reactions and comments: Ronaldo & Messi miss out

As Messi – eight awards – and Ronaldo – five awards – missed out for the first time in 21 years, fans reacted emotionally on social media with many of them calling it an ‘end of an era’.

@legaldavidson wrote on X: “Messi and Ronaldo’s era is officially over.”

ALSO READ: Ballon d’Or: Vinicius, Rodri; the 2024 Golden Ball nominees

An X user by the name @Empty__47 wrote: “The end of an era! Messi and Ronaldo’s absence from the Ballon d’Or list marks a new chapter in football. Time for the next-gen to shine!”

A user named @AaronBabb99 noted the unusual feeling of not seeing either of the two icons nominated. “Strange feeling knowing Ronaldo and Messi aren’t nominated for Ballon d’Or,” they wrote.

@MagicMopCleanin: “No Messi, No Ronaldo. End of an era. They both dominated the world of football. An amazing era it was.”

This user named @Blizzflix lamented that the iconic rivalry is finally over as he wrote: “The rivalry is over. We changed football. The Ronaldo x Messi era will live on forever.”

Getty

Vini, Bellingham & Rodri favourites The expectation

The 2023-24 campaign was the first time in over two decades that neither Ronaldo nor Messi played in Europe. While the Portuguese legend moved to the Saudi Pro League in January 2023, the Argentine headed to the MLS to join Inter Miami last June. The icons, however, enjoyed success at their respective clubs as Ronaldo scored 50 goals in Saudi Arabia while Messi helped the Herons lift their first-ever trophy, the inaugural Leagues Cup.

Getty Images

The next move for Messi and Cristiano

The 39-year-old Al-Nassr star will be next seen in action for the national team as Portugal takes on Croatia in their Nations League opener on Thursday night. Messi, on the other hand, has been left out of La Albiceleste squad for the World Cup qualifying games as the veteran star is yet to recover from his ankle injury that he suffered in the Copa America 2024 final.

Tags: Ballon d'Or Snub Messi and Ronaldo era

2 thoughts on “Messi and Ronaldo era ‘Officially Over’ after Ballon d’Or Snub”

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September 14, 2024 at 8:38 am
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1. Sheriff Willy Essotina says:
  September 16, 2024 at 8:27 pm
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