As expected, Cristiano Ronaldo won the Ballon d’Or yesterday when he competed against Lionel Messi and Manuel Neuer. This was the Portuguese striker’s second consecutive Ballon d’Or and the third of his career.
For the second time in a row and third time in his football career, Cristiano Ronaldo has won the coveted Ballon d’Or.
This year, he was competing against his fiercest competitor Lionel Messi of Barcelona and Bayern Munich’s goalkeeper Manuel Neuer.
Ronaldo, who won this popular title even in 2013, successfully defended it. Of all the votes, he garnered the maximum 37.66% which helped him keep the status of world player of the year.
The Real Madrid striker had a fantastic year while helped his team get the Champions League victory. In addition to that, he scored a plethora of goals helping Real Madrid finish at the top position in La Liga.
Even before the result was announced, the entire world knew what the outcome would be. In the process, Ronaldo beat his two competitors comprehensively. Where Lionel Messi earned a total of 15.76%, Manuel Neuer finished third with 15.72%.
This is the names of the people who voted for the finalists –
Ronaldo – Iker Casillas, Robbie Keane, Wayne Rooney and Gordon Strachan
Messi – Zlatan Ibrahimović, Claudio Bravo, Ray Wilkins and Gerardo Martino
Neuer – Jürgen Klinsmann, Joachim Löw, Claudio Ranieri and Fabio Capello
Neither Messi nor Ronaldo voted for each other clearly exhibiting their rivalry to have intensified with time.
One of the things that surprised many attendees at the ceremony, the media and the fans alike was that Ronaldo appeared cockier than the last year when he bellowed at the audience.
![123.[1]](https://www.youngisthan.in/userfiles/football-ronaldo/123.[1].jpg)
Former Arsenal and France striker Thierry Henry, who presented the award, was clearly not impressed.
Nevertheless, there was also a touching moment where at one time Ronaldo’s son came running to up him on the stage.
Ronaldo had scored 53 goals in 43 games in the 2014 season.
After accepting the award, the 29-year-old footballer was quoted as saying, “I would like to thank all of those who voted for me, my president, my coach and Real Madrid. It has been an unforgettable year. To win this trophy at the end of it is something incredibly unique.”
