Ballon d'Or: The players who won it almost unanimously

While some Ballon d'Or awards have sparked controversy, others were handed out with near-unanimous support. Let's look back at the highest winning percentages in the award's history.

In 2011, Lionel Messi secured his third Ballon d'Or. The Argentine did it with a staggering 47.88% of the vote, outpacing his rival Cristiano Ronaldo (21.60%) and club teammate Xavi (9.23%).

Also read: Ballon d'Or 2025: Favorites and everything you need to know about the prestigious ceremony

Cristiano Ronaldo also dominated the competition in 2016, the year Portugal triumphed at the Euros, winning the prize with 47.85% of the vote, ahead of Lionel Messi (20.30%) and Antoine Griezmann (12.72%).

Here are the Ballon d'Or winners with the highest percentage of votes:

1- Lionel Messi (2011 - 47.88%)

2- Cristiano Ronaldo (2016 - 47.85%)

3- Lionel Messi (2012 - 41.60%)

4- Lionel Messi (2015 - 41.33%)

5- Karim Benzema (2022 - 36.90%)

For the 2025 edition, with no clear favorite in sight, the winner is unlikely to post a high enough percentage to break into this Top 5.

Imed Ben Amara |

Editorar, fr

Imed Ben Amara - bilingual sports writer and web editor with experience in football content creation. Since 2021, he has contributed to Foot Africa, providing news coverage and analysis.