Next week Cristiano Ronaldo, Franck Ribery and Lionel Messi will find out which player will wind up with the Ballon d'Or. Franck Ribery was once seen as a front-runner, but has seemingly fallen out of favor. The battle seems to depend heavily on whether the voters pick Ronaldo or Messi.
Ronaldo finished the 2013 calendar year with over 60 goals while Messi only managed a few over 40. Messi's year has been plagued by injuries that have not only hampered his production, but have kept him out of the game for long periods of time.
From a statistical standpoint, Ronaldo is the clear favorite and his performances in the fall have done little to change public opinion. He scored 18 goals before the change of the calendar and also had nine Champions League matches in the group stage; he finished the first half of the 2013-14 season with 27 goals in all competitions for Real Madrid. He was also terrific for Portugal and was the major reason why the team qualified for the World Cup. He scored the lone goal in the opening leg against Sweden and followed it with a three-goal performance in the second leg.
So why would Messi have any chance of beating Ronaldo? He won more trophies than his rival; Messi won the Spanish League title and also picked up the Spanish Super Cup. However, the major reason why he is the favorite is because when all is said and done, the FIFA Ballon d'Or is a popularity contest. And Messi is more beloved than either Ronaldo or Ribery as both stars are known for their often-polarizing personalities. This makes Messi the front-runner in the tournament.
Who should win the Ballon d'Or?
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