Real Madrid have only been outnumbered by La Liga rivals Barcelona when it comes to the number of Ballon d’Or winners provided by a single club, but that gap was closed by one as Karim Benzema hoisted the 2021/22 award.
Going back to the origins of the prestigious award, two Madrid players finished behind inaugural winner Stanley Matthews in 1956, one of whom, Alfredo Di Stefano, went one better by finishing first the following year.
Madrid’s dominance is demonstrated by its players winning the Ballon d’Or on three successive occasions during the 20th and 21st centuries.
The Sporting News takes a look at some of the game’s greatest superstars to have walked away with the most coveted individual prize a football player can receive.
Who was the last Real Madrid player to win the Ballon d’Or?
On October 17, Karim Benzema won the 2021/22 Ballon d’Or, becoming the latest Real Madrid player to win football’s most coveted individual prize. It was the first Ballon d’Or to be handed out in October, encompassing the new timeline of a European club season rather than a calendar year.
Prior to that, Luka Modric made up for losing the 2018 World Cup final with Croatia by breaking Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo’s long run of successive Ballon d’Or triumphs.
The visionary midfielder helped Madrid to win the Champions League the previous season and was rewarded by dethroning Ronaldo, who finished second.
👑 KING KARIM JOINS THE #BALLONDOR CLUB.#RealFootball pic.twitter.com/u89WglJ0oW
— Real Madrid C.F. 🇬🇧🇺🇸 (@realmadriden) October 17, 2022
Which Real Madrid players have won the Ballon d’Or?
Ronaldo had been Modric’s team-mate at Madrid when he won the trophy the previous season, although the striker joined Juventus before the 2019 ceremony.
That was part of a remarkable run by Ronaldo in which he won the Ballon d’Or in five seasons out of six from 2013, ending a sequence of four straight victories for Messi.
Ballon d’Or Benz 😎
Luka Modrić thinks Karim Benzema is playing as well as Cristiano Ronaldo did for Real Madrid right now 🙌
Would winning the Champions League cement the Frenchman as the best in the world? 🥇 pic.twitter.com/TzAsZUCluS
— Football on BT Sport (@btsportfootball) May 26, 2022
Another legendary forward, Alfredo di Stefano, came second behind Matthews in the first awards in 1956, with midfielder Raymond Kopa third. Di Stefano would proceed to win two of the following three awards, interrupted by Kopa’s victory in 1958.
| Player | Year |
| Alfredo di Stefano | 1957, 1959 |
| Raymond Kopa | 1958 |
| Luis Figo | 2000 |
| Ronaldo | 2002 |
| Fabio Cannavaro | 2006 |
| Cristiano Ronaldo | 2013, 2014, 2016, 2017 |
| Luka Modric | 2018 |
| Karim Benzema | 2021/22 |
Which Real Madrid players have been nominated for the Ballon d’Or?
Kopa shared joint-third with Manchester United’s Duncan Edwards in 1957, and Hungary legend Ferenc Puskas finished second three years later.
Wideman Amancio took bronze in 1964, as did striker Emilio Butragueno in 1986 and 1987. Forward Predrag Mijatovic was runner-up in 1997, which was also the position the prolific Davor Suker claimed in 1998.
Spain hitman Raul was beaten by future Madrid man Michael Owen in 2001, and the Brazilian Ronaldo beat iconic full-back Roberto Carlos in 2002.
Cristiano Ronaldo finished second in 2009, 2011, 2012 and 2015. Current Madrid marksman Karim Benzema was fourth in 2021, with Modric joint 29th. Benzema then won in 2021/22.
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