Over the course of a 15-year period from 2008 to 2023, Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo collected 13 Ballons d’Or between them. They won 10-in-a-row at one stage, with an era of record-shattering dominance being enjoyed by two sporting GOATs. 

Luka Modric and Karim Benzema, who were both on the books of Real Madrid at the time, were the only men to buck the most remarkable of trends. All good things must, however, come to an end. 

While Messi and Ronaldo are still going strong, the battle to be billed as the ‘greatest player on the planet’ has become more than a two-horse race. Kylian Mbappe was expected, given the blistering pace that he possesses, to surge towards the front of that pack. 

Separate the best from the rest 

Kylian MVP.

— Real Madrid C.F. 🇬🇧🇺🇸 (@realmadriden) September 13, 2025

His day may come, with anyone looking for an online football bet relating to the Champions League able to get Real Madrid at 8/1 to collect a continental crown in 2025-26. The Blancos’ rich history in that competition means that football tips will forever be weighted in their favour. 

History dictates that success in Europe will influence Ballon d’Or polls. Those casting votes look to the most prestigious of tournaments – at club and international level – for inspiration when attempting to separate the best from the rest. 

Mbappe needs no reminding that he is yet to savour Champions League glory. A switch to Santiago Bernabeu in 2024 was made with the intention of bringing that barren run to a close, while also forcing his way into contention for the award. 

The World Cup-winning Frenchman is still waiting on both of those accolades. He has never finished higher than third in the Ballon d’Or rankings, with there seemingly always somebody a couple of steps ahead of him when it comes to chasing after the baton put down by Messi and Ronaldo. 

Mbappe has been warned that there is still much work to be done, collectively and individually, in order for him to claim the award that he now covets most. Fellow countryman Marcel Desailly has said: “It’s just unfortunate that Madrid has dropped. The cycle of Madrid has dropped a little bit. The statistics are magnificent, but he’s missing something that will push him to become a Ballon d’Or.” 

Time is still on his side, while he appears to be in the best possible place to earn Ballon d’Or honours – with Real Madrid’s roll of honour in that department including Modric, Benzema, two versions of Ronaldo, Zinedine Zidane, Fabio Cannavaro, Michael Owen, Luis Figo, Alfredo Di Stefano and Raymond Kopa. 

Shadow cast by Messi and Ronaldo 

Yes or no… Will Neymar win a Ballon d'Or? 🌟

— GOAL (@goal) February 5, 2020

Mbappe is, however, not the first shining light in La Liga to find a Ballon d’Or difficult to acquire. Brazilian icon Neymar, during his time at Barcelona, was forced to operate in the sizable shadow cast by Messi and CR7. 

He will go down as one of the finest talents never to land the Ballon d’Or. Former Paris Saint-Germain team-mate Gianluigi Buffon has said of the Samba superstar: “For the player and the boy he is, he should have won five Ballons d’Or!” 

Mbappe is in danger of tumbling into a similar talent pool, one filled with tales of what could have been, and it is up to him to prove that said fate can be avoided as he completes an ascension from crown prince to King of the castle.