JAKARTA - The biggest football event on planet earth will be held in Qatar in a matter of months. Held from November 21 to December 18, the World Cup this time is predicted to bring new surprises.
One of the individual awards, the Golden Ball, will be awarded to the best player at each FIFA World Cup finals, with a short list drawn up by FIFA's technical committee and the winner chosen by media representatives.
Those who finished runner-up in the voting received Silver Ball and Bronze Ball awards as the second and third most outstanding players in the tournament.
This award was first introduced at the 1982 World Cup. Sponsored by Adidas and France Football, Italian striker Paulo Rossi emerged as the recipient of this trophy in Spain.
The following are the names of players who have received the Golden Ball since the 1982 World Cup as quoted by VOI from the official FIFA website. The recipients of the award do not only come from the team whose country became the champion.
1. 1982 World Cup (Spain) - Paulo Rossi (Italy).
2. 1986 World Cup (Mexico) - Diego Maradona (Argentina).
3. 1990 World Cup (Italy) - Salvatore Chillaci (Italy).
4. 1994 World Cup (United States) - Romário (Brazil).
5. 1998 World Cup (France) - Ronaldo (Brazil).
6. 2022 World Cup (South Korea - Japan) - Oliver Kahn (Germany).
7. 2006 World Cup (Germany) - Zinedine Zidane (France).
8. 2010 World Cup (South Africa) - Diego Forlán (Uruguay).
9. 2014 World Cup (Brazil) - Lionel Messi (Argentina).
10. 2018 World Cup (Russia) - Luka Modrić (Croatia).
Unofficial awards
In July 1978, a panel of 23 international experts made up of critics, coaches and former players each selected the five best players from the 1978 tournament that Argentina won.
Mario Kempes got the most votes from the results of the vote count. The FIFA website and RSSSF (Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation, an international amateur organization dedicated to collecting statistics on football) also named Kempes the winner of the Golden Ball.
The FIFA and RSSSF sites only mention Dirceu as the Bronze Ball winner, even though Dirceu and Hans Krankl have the same number of top five finishes.
Messi controversy
At the 2014 World Cup in Brazil, then FIFA President, Sepp Blatter admitted that awarding the Golden Ball to Argentina's Lionel Messi as the tournament's best player in the Samba Country was a mistake.
Messi received the award after Argentina lost 0-1 in the final in extra time. That's right, Despite an outstanding performance during the competition by scoring four goals, but Blatter thinks there are other candidates who are more worthy of being rewarded for the award.
"I thought the decision was wrong. I was shocked when I accepted the committee's decision," Blatter was quoted as saying by the Blecher Report. "They told me they only saw 10 players taking part in the final."
Indeed, many feel that Colombia's James Rodriguez or Germany's Manuel Neuer – winner of the Golden Boot and Golden Glove respectively – may be more deserving of the award.
The likes of Arjen Robben, Neymar and Thomas Muller also have potentially better cases than Messi, according to BBC and talkSPORT expert Michael Gray and New York Times journalist Roger Cohen.
Messi golden ball...? I don't think so.. Robben Neuer or Rodriguez all day long #WorldCup2014
— michael gray (@mickygray33) July 13, 2014A farce to give the Golden Ball to Messi. Which World Cup Fifa been watching? If looking for a striker, Muller or Rodriguez or even Neymar.
— Roger Cohen (@NYTimesCohen) July 13, 2014
As Lee Thomas-Mason reported in the Daily Mirror, there were many theories explaining at the time that, because both Golden Ball and Messi were sponsored by Adidas, the sportswear company had a hand in influencing the vote.
SEE ALSO:
2022 World Cup Golden Ball Winners
It remains to be seen who will win the Golden Ball in Qatar in December. The reason, winning this trophy is very dependent on the appearance of the players in each match.
Although Lionel Messi has again emerged as the most favorite candidate to win the Golden Ball, never forget names like Cristiano Ronaldo, Neymar, Kevin de Bruyne, Kylian Mbappe, Neymar, Karim Benzema and of course Harry Kane.
Messi's journey in the World Cup finals will also not be easy. He has to deal directly with five top players who will threaten the existence of La Pulga to win the title, both as a team and individually.
Team Tango occupies Group C, along with Poland, Mexico and Saudi Arabia. Without intending to underestimate the latter team, Lionel Scaloni's men are more obliged to be wary of Poland and Mexico. These two teams are inhabited by rows of players who compete in giant European league clubs.
Poland, of course, has Bayern Munich striker Robert Lewandowski and Napoli striker Piotr Zielinski. Both can harm their opponents, including Argentina and his Messi
Meanwhile, the Tricolor was even more vicious. They are inhabited by Hirving Lozano who also plays for Napoli, Hector Herrera who wears Atlético Madrid and Wolverhampton Wanderers striker Raul Jimenez.
In addition, there is also a Real Betis midfielder, Andres Guardado, who also had a career with PSV Eindhoven. Not to mention the experienced player Javier Chicarito Hernandez who currently plays in Major League Soccer with LA Galaxy.
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