Ballon d’Or 2024 Power Rankings: Florian Wirtz’s hopes fade after Bayer Leverkusen’s Europa League heartbreak

In 2023-24: 28 goals, eight assists. Won Serie A & Supercoppa Italiana.

If any moment summed up Lautaro Martinez’s big-match struggles, it was his woeful penalty in Inter’s shootout loss to Atletico Madrid that ended their hopes of reaching a second-successive Champions League final in the last 16.

The striker has been on a tear in Serie A this season, though, as he led Inter to a dominant title win, and could yet be part of a victorious Argentina squad at the Copa America. But his failure to prove himself in the biggest occasions is likely to mean he finishes down the Ballon d’Or pecking order once again.

In 2023-24: 30 goals, 17 assists. Won Carabao Cup.

Salah finished just outside the top 10 in the 2023 Ballon d’Or voting despite Liverpool’s struggles last season, and so it felt like the ‘Egyptian King’ had a real chance of forcing himself into contention as the Reds pursued both the Premier League title and Europa League to go with the Carabao Cup they had already won in February.

However, Salah’s poor form since returning from injury coincided with Jurgen Klopp’s side echoing their manager in running out of energy, and they will have to be content with just a solitary trophy from the German’s final season in charge.

Salah’s injury agony, which began at the Africa Cup of Nations, has not only diminished him at club level, but also meant he missed the chance to enjoy the same international success that some of his rivals might have this summer. Ballon d’Or voters have short memories, and so his early-season heroics are likely to have been largely forgotten once the ballots are cast.

In 2023-24: 25 goals, 10 assists.

It went under the radar somewhat, but there was an argument to say that from the beginning of the 2022 World Cup through to the end of 2023, there wasn’t a more consistent high-level performer anywhere in Europe than Griezmann.

His form during the first half of the current season had Atletico dreaming of domestic and European glory, but the Rojiblancos have long since slipped out of La Liga’s title race and just about hung onto a top-four finish. They also exited the Champions League after twice throwing away the lead in their quarter-final with Borussia Dortmund just as the competition looked to be opening up for them.

Griezmann could still lead France to glory at Euro 2024 this summer, but his chances of claiming the Ballon d’Or this year are slim at best.

In 2023-24: 12 goals, 13 assists. Won Premier League, Club World Cup & UEFA Super Cup.

Bernardo may have had plenty of memorable moments over the course of the campaign, including the winning goal in FA Cup semi-final victory over Chelsea, but the lasting memory from what could prove to be his final season at the Etihad Stadium now threatens to be his embarrassing penalty miss in the shootout as City’s Champions League defence came to an end at the hands of Real Madrid.

He still helped Pep Guardiola’s side to a record-breaking fourth-successive league Premier League title – he laid on two assists in their title-decider on the final day of the campaign – while a strong showing at Euro 2024 for a well-fancied Portugal could yet vault him back into contention for a top 10 finish in the Ballon d’Or.

In 2023-24: 23 goals, 15 assists. Won Leagues Cup.

Surely not number nine?! Messi became the first man playing outside Europe to win the Ballon d’Or in 2023, but he earned the prize for his performances while employed by Paris Saint-Germain. Could he now win a Golden Ball while playing exclusively on the other side of the Atlantic?

The odds are admittedly stacked against him. With the new MLS season having only begun in February, Messi will not be able to win any meaningful domestic trophies during the voting period for the 2024 award. His hopes of continental success are also over, as Miami crashed out of the CONCACAF Champions Cup thanks to an embarrassing quarter-final exit at the hands of Monterrey.

However, Messi has been in electric form since returning from a recent injury, and if he can have Miami somewhere near the top of the Eastern Conference before then guiding Argentina to a third-successive tournament triumph at the 2024 Copa America, then all bets might be off.

In 2023-24: Six goals, 18 assists. Won Premier League.

De Bruyne even challenging for the Ballon d’Or after he missed the entire first half of the season due to injury might seem fanciful, but if anyone could have forced themselves into the reckoning, then it was the Man City midfielder.

The 32-year-old showed great form following his return in January, and was once more a key player for a Pep Guardiola’s team, even if his Champions League goal against Real Madrid wasn’t enough to keep City’s dreams of a double-treble alive, while he also went missing in the FA Cup final.

He will, however, be the main figurehead for a Belgium team who, while unfancied to go all the way, have got a decent draw at the European Championship, meaning he could keep climbing these rankings over the summer.

In 2023-24: Seven goals, 10 assists.

Some eyebrows were raised when Arsenal forked out £105 million ($137m) to sign Rice from West Ham over the summer, but any doubts over the deal were quickly erased thanks to the midfielder’s superb campaign. Not only was the England international been key in shielding Mikel Arteta’s defence, he also scored some stunning goals, while in 2024 he added a new string to his bow by becoming a set-piece expert for a team that emerged as the Premier League’s dead-ball specialists.

In the end, Rice couldn’t lead the Gunners to any silverware as they came up short in both the Premier League and Champions League, but if he plays an important role for a successful England side at the Euros, then a spot on the Ballon d’Or shortlist is a realistic proposition.

In 2022-23: Four goals, one assist, 11 clean sheets.

One of, if not the outstanding centre-back in this season’s Champions League, it was fitting that Hummels scored the goal that secured Dortmund’s place in the final against Paris Saint-Germain. The former Bayern Munich man has been a colossus at the back for Edin Terzic’s side, and he will have to be at his very best if the German team are to beat Real Madrid at Wembley.

Even if Dortmund are able to pull off a shock result on June 1, it remains to be seen how high up the Ballon d’Or voting Hummels can finish. BVB endured a disappointing Bundesliga season, while the veteran was left out of Germany’s squad for Euro 2024 amid reports that he was not happy with being a potential substitute this summer. He is at risk, then, of being forgotten by the Ballon d’Or voters.

In 2023-24: 20 goals, 15 assists.

Anyone who believed Arsenal might fall away after last season’s title-race disappointment was proven wrong in 2023-24, with Saka leading the way for Mikel Arteta’s side as they aimed to break their long Premier League trophy drought.

The England winger started 2024 in electric fashion as the Gunners showed their best form of the campaign, but they still managed to come up agonisingly short in their battle with Manchester City, while they also crashed out of the Champions League at the quarter-final stage in limp fashion to Bayern Munich, with Saka kept quiet in Bavaria.

Regardless, if Saka can carry his personal form into Euro 2024 and help lead England to glory, he could have a real shot at challenging for a place at the top of the Ballon d’Or standings.

In 2023-24: 41 goals, six assists. Won Premier League, Club World Cup & UEFA Super Cup.

Haaland could barely have done more to win the 2023 Ballon d’Or and yet still came up just short, so could he get over the hump this time around? The answer looks likely to be ‘no’, as despite his fine goal-scoring record, he has endured some forgettable performances in 2024, most recently in the FA Cup final. He could still ended the campaign with a league title after claiming the Premier League Golden Boot, but going out of the Champions League in the quarter-finals is likely to prove costly to his Golden Ball hopes.

That is because of the biggest obstacle that was already in Haaland’s way, which is that he will again miss the big summer tournament after Norway failed to qualify for Euro 2024. There was always a chance that if other contenders shone in Germany, then Haaland’s potential heroics might be forgotten come voting time. As it is, they might merely push him further down the final rankings.

In 2023-24: Three goals, three assists, 17 clean sheets. Won La Liga & Supercopa de Espana.

At the start of the season, Rudiger wasn’t even in Real Madrid’s first-choice XI, but injuries to Eder Militao and David Alaba have since seen him emerge as the senior centre-back at Santiago Bernabeu. It’s a responsibility he’s relishing, too, with his performances in silencing Erling Haaland during Los Blancos’ Champions League win over Manchester City typical of what the ex-Chelsea man has been delivering in 2023-24.

Rudiger could yet end the season with a domestic and European double to his name, while he is also likely to be important for Germany this summer as Julian Nagelsmann’s improving side eye Euros glory on home soil.

In 2023-24: 18 goals, nine assists. Won La Liga & Supercopa de Espana.

Rodrygo’s form had fallen off somewhat after a strong finish to 2023, while there is no doubt that others at Santiago Bernabeu continue to dominate the headlines far more than the Brazilian winger. However, after scoring in both legs of Madrid’s Champions League quarter-final win over Manchester City, the ex-Santos starlet has vaulted himself right back into the minds of Ballon d’Or voters.

If he can again be a difference-maker in the Champions League final, before helping to lead his country to glory at the Copa America, then he could find himself among the true contenders come the end of the summer.

In 2023-24: 11 goals, 15 assists. Won Premier League, Club World Cup & UEFA Super Cup.

Until the FA Cup final, it had been over a year since Rodri last tasted defeat inside 90 minutes for Man City, and little illustrated his importance to the team more than the fact that they lost each of the first three Premier League games that he missed in 2023-24.

He remains the best defensive midfielder in the world right now, and the fact that the Spain international has also developed a habit of popping up with crucial goals and assists – including the strike which sealed the Premier League title for City – means he is catching the eyes of even more fans, and Ballon d’Or voters. He will be a key figure for a talented Spain team at Euro 2024 this summer, too.

In 2023-24: 19 goals, 21 assists. Won Bundesliga & DFB-Pokal.

Bayer Leverkusen unbeaten run ended at 51 matches after a truly remarkable season that saw Xabi Alonso’s side celebrated the club’s first-ever Bundesliga title with an invincible campaign before backing that up with a DFB-Pokal triumph. They did, however, miss out on the Europa League after losing out to Atalanta in the final.

Despite that, Ballon d’Or voters will be keen to reward Alonso’s most important players, and few – if any – had better campaigns than Wirtz, whose hat-trick against Werder Bremen in April put the seal on their title win.

The playmaker’s form since recovering from a serious knee injury has been superb, and is likely to earn him a £100-million-plus move over the next 12 months or so, as well as a starting role for hosts Germany at Euro 2024. The only thing holding him back right now in terms of the Ballon d’Or is name recognition, but that could easily change in the coming weeks.

In 2023-24: One goal, 11 assists. Won La Liga & Supercopa de Espana.

At 34, Kroos has been rolling back the years for Real Madrid in what has turned out to be his last-ever campaign following his shock decision to retire. That said, his excellent performances have only begun to be spoken about by a wider audience after his masterful showings against Bayern Munich in Madrid’s victorious Champions League semi-final.

Few would back against Kroos now helping to lead Carlo Ancelotti’s side to European glory to go with their domestic title, while he has also been tempted out of international retirement by Julian Nagelsmann, and he therefore promises to be a key figure for Euros hosts Germany this summer, too.

In 2023-24: 48 goals, 14 assists.

Kane’s move to Bayern was meant to put him in a spot where he could finally end the wait for a first trophy of his career, but the Bavarians will now finish the season without any silverware after surrendering the Bundesliga title to Bayer Leverkusen and losing out to Real Madrid in the Champions League semi-final.

Kane has continued to score at a record-breaking rate and averaged more than a goal a game in the league for the deposed champions. With that in mind, him firing England to Euros glory could yet be enough to edge him into real Ballon d’Or contention.

In 2023-24: 28 goals, 12 assists. Won Premier League, Club World Cup & UEFA Super Cup.

As Kevin De Bruyne and Erling Haaland missed chunks of the season through injury, Foden stepped up in spectacular fashion for City and enjoyed the best campaign of his already illustrious career to date.

He scored two Premier League hat-tricks since the turn of the year as well as a stunning brace on the final day to seal a fourth-successive domestic title for Pep Guardiola’s side, though his superb strike at Santiago Bernabeu against Real Madrid ended up counting for nothing as City crashed out of the Champions League on penalties in the quarter-finals.

That said, not only has the newly-crowned Premier League Player of the Year been in superb form for City, it has also given him a great chance of starting for much-fancied England at Euro 2024, too.

In 2023-24: 50 goals, 17 assists. Won Ligue 1, Coupe de France & Trophee des Champions.

The saga is almost over, as we now know that this was Mbappe’s final Ballon d’Or campaign as a PSG player, with his protracted move to Real Madrid expected to be confirmed in the coming weeks. Mbappe’s goals sealed a third-successive Ligue 1 title for the Parisians, but the forward’s dream of bringing European success to Parc des Princes is over after PSG lost out in the Champions League semi-finals to Borussia Dortmund.

That said, with France the favourites to win Euro 2024 in many people’s eyes, the 25-year-old could yet enjoy an epic end to the season, with a first Golden Ball still within touching distance.

In 2023-24: 25 goals, 15 assists. Won La Liga & Supercopa de Espana.

The best footballer in the world during the first half of the 2023-24 season, Bellingham took to his new surroundings at Real Madrid like no signing since Cristiano Ronaldo. Not only did he score frequently, but he also netted hugely important goals, too.

The hype around him was tempetede somewhat in early 2024, in part due to him missing games through injury and suspension, but he reignited his Golden Ball bid with a tireless performance to help knock Manchester City out of the Champions League before netting his second stoppage-time winner in El Clasico of the season.

With Bellingham getting back to top form, England will be confident of finally getting over their major tournament hump at the European Championship, too. However, he is no longer the Ballon d’Or frontrunner…

In 2023-24: 23 goals, 11 assists. Won La Liga & Supercopa de Espana.

Injury meant that Vinicius did not got off to the fast start many might have expected when Karim Benzema left Real Madrid, but having finally shaken off his fitness issues, the winger is back to his best – and them some.

He netted a hat-trick to help beat Barcelona in the final of the Spanish Super Cup, while he has been in fine goal-scoring form in La Liga as Carlo Ancelotti’s secured the title at home. Perhaps most notably, though, he was the outstanding player in both legs of Madrid’s Champions Lague semi-final win over Bayern Munich, and few would bet against the electric winger lighting up Wembley in the final on June 1.

When you factor in that he’ll also likely be Brazil’s main man at the Copa America following Neymar’s season-ending knee injury, Vinicius is set up for a memorable 2024.