The 10 Youngest Ballon d'Or Winners of All-time
- Think Football Ideas
- Mar 14
- 4 min read
Updated: Mar 15
There is something irresistible about youth. The boundless energy, the audacity to challenge giants, the reckless beauty of talent unshackled. Football, a sport that adores experience, is occasionally taken hostage by prodigies who refuse to wait their turn.
The Ballon d'Or, the sport's most coveted individual prize, has crowned many kings, but only a handful had the nerve to take the throne before their time. These are the ten youngest to ever do it, ranked from the oldest among them to the one who did it while the ink was still fresh on his passport.
Here Are The 10 Youngest Ballon d'Or Winners of All-time
10. Luis Suárez – 1960 (25 years, 7 months, 10 days)
Before tiki-taka and La Masia, before Spain ruled football with an iron foot in a velvet boot, there was Luis Suárez Miramontes.
A Galician magician with the vision of an eagle and the poise of a matador, he pulled the strings for Barcelona before taking his artistry to Italy, where he became the brain of Helenio Herrera’s indomitable Inter Milan. In 1960, he became the first (and, to this day, only) Spaniard to win the Ballon d’Or, leaving behind the shadows of Puskás and Di Stéfano to claim his place in history.
9. Johan Cruyff – 1971 (24 years, 8 months, 3 days)
There are players who shape games, and then there are players who shape history. Johan Cruyff was the latter. At 24, he was the messiah of Total Football, a player who didn’t just play the game but reinvented it.
With Ajax, he was more conductor than forward, orchestrating the Dutch revolution that would soon conquer the world. The Ballon d’Or was merely a formality—his legacy was already being written.
8. Marco van Basten – 1988 (24 years, 1 month, 27 days)
Some players are remembered for moments, but Marco van Basten was remembered for all of them. A forward with elegance and instinct, he made scoring look effortless—almost inevitable.
Yet, one moment lingers above the rest—the 1988 European Championship final. A volley from an impossible angle, struck so cleanly that time seemed to hold its breath. The kind of goal that turns great players into legends.
But that was Van Basten—graceful, ruthless, unforgettable. At 24, he won the Ballon d'Or, a crown for a player who made the extraordinary look routine, cementing himself as one of the most elegant assassins the sport had ever seen.
7. Eusébio – 1965 (23 years, 11 months, 3 days)
There was fire in his feet. A streak of lightning wrapped in Benfica red, Eusébio wasn’t just a goal-scorer—he was a force of nature. Born in Mozambique, he carried Portugal on his back and Benfica in his heart, smashing in goals like they owed him money. In 1965, the Ballon d’Or belonged to him, and by then, the world already knew his name.
6. Cristiano Ronaldo – 2008 (23 years, 9 months, 27 days)
It’s easy to forget what Cristiano Ronaldo was before he became an empire. Before the sculpted physique, the brand, the five Ballon d’Ors, there was a wiry young man in a Manchester United shirt, dancing past defenders like a man possessed.
In 2008, he scored 42 goals, lifted the Champions League, and stood atop the footballing world. And if you asked him back then, he’d tell you it was just the beginning.
5. Oleg Blokhin – 1975 (23 years, 1 month, 25 days)
The Soviet Union was never known for individual flair, but Oleg Blokhin didn’t ask for permission. A bullet in Dynamo Kyiv blue, he tore down the left wing with a speed that left defenders gasping for air. In 1975, he didn’t just win the Ballon d’Or—he smashed the iron curtain of football, proving that brilliance could bloom anywhere, even behind political walls.
4. George Best – 1968 (22 years, 7 months, 2 days)
There was no one like him. A rockstar before football had rockstars, George Best was the boy who played like a dream and lived like a legend.
The dribbles, the goals, the glamour—he was Manchester United’s answer to Beatlemania. In 1968, after leading United to their first European Cup, he was untouchable. The Ballon d’Or was his, but immortality had already been secured.
3. Lionel Messi – 2009 (22 years, 5 months, 7 days)
Some players are destined. Lionel Messi was different—he was inevitable. In 2009, Barcelona won everything there was to win, and Messi? He wasn’t just part of it—he was the reason. He moved like a whisper, struck like a storm, and left defenders chasing ghosts. The Ballon d’Or vote was a landslide. At 22, he had only just begun his war against history.
2. Michael Owen – 2001 (22 years, 4 days)
Michael Owen’s career was a bullet fired too fast, too soon, but for one golden year, he was untouchable. In 2001, he was the golden boy of English football, Liverpool’s talisman, the kind of striker who needed only half a second and half a chance. He won five trophies that year, left defenders in his wake, and stunned Europe by beating Raúl and Figo to the Ballon d’Or.
1. Ronaldo Nazário – 1997 (21 years, 3 months, 5 days)
Some players dribble past defenders. Ronaldo Nazário vanished past them. At 21, he had already run riot in Brazil, Spain, Italy—wherever football was played, he left devastation behind. He wasn’t just fast; he was a blur. He wasn’t just powerful; he was inevitable. In 1997, he became the youngest Ballon d’Or winner in history. By then, no one was surprised.
And so the cycle continues. Somewhere, another young player is watching these names, dreaming of writing his own. Maybe it’s Bellingham. Maybe it’s Yamal. Maybe it’s someone we haven’t heard of yet. But one thing is certain—football never stops finding its next young king.
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