Cristiano Ronaldo’s 2008 Ballon d’Or-winning campaign has been voted the greatest in the history of the prestigious individual football award in a fan poll organised by French magazine France Football.
The Portuguese forward’s first Ballon d’Or season topped the magazine’s B.O.A.T. (Ballon d’Or of All Time) initiative, which invited supporters to select the greatest award-winning campaign among players who had won the Golden Ball at least twice.
As reported by football transfer expert, Fabrizio Romano on X, the results were announced on Wednesday, two days after the main 2026 Ballon d’Or ceremony, with Ronaldo finishing ahead of Lionel Messi’s 2012 campaign.
Ronaldo won the 2008 award after an outstanding season with Manchester United, scoring 42 goals in all competitions and helping the English club secure both the Premier League title and the UEFA Champions League.
The forward also finished as the Premier League’s top scorer with 31 goals and claimed the European Golden Shoe for his performances during the 2007-08 campaign.
His achievements established him as one of the leading players in world football and secured his first Ballon d’Or, with 446 points from 96 journalists, well ahead of Messi, who finished second in the original voting.
The fan poll focused on individual seasons rather than ranking players’ overall careers. Only footballers who had won at least two Ballon d’Or awards were eligible, with other multiple winners, including Ronaldo Nazário, Michel Platini and Marco van Basten, also featuring in the contest.
France Football presented the initiative as a celebration of fans’ passion for football, stressing that the result was not an official trophy or a formal ranking determined by journalists.
Despite the controversy surrounding the format, Ronaldo’s 2008 campaign emerged as the fans’ preferred choice, nearly two decades after he first claimed the award.
The result further highlights the enduring impact of Ronaldo’s achievements at Manchester United during a season in which he combined individual scoring records with major team honours.
His rivalry with Messi has defined much of modern football, with both players winning multiple Ballon d’Or awards and producing several landmark seasons during their careers.
The poll’s outcome places Ronaldo’s 2008 campaign at the top of the fan-selected list, ahead of Messi’s remarkable 2012 season, when the Argentine set a calendar-year scoring record that further cemented his place among football’s most celebrated players.
