Predicting the next 15 Ballon d'Or winners (2023-2037) ft Mbappe and Haaland | OneFootball

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The football community is buzzing after the 30 nominees for the 2023 Ballon d'Or were announced.

The race this year is intensifying, with Lionel Messi and Erling Haaland at the forefront of the discussion and expected to compete for football's most prestigious individual award.

While the outcome of this year's award is quite clear, it begs the question: who will be the footballers that win the Ballon d'Or for the next decade and a half of football?

Well, join GIVEMESPORT as we dive in and make our daring predictions for the Ballon d'Or winners for the next 15 years, taking us from 2023 to 2037.

15 2023 - Erling Haaland

Let's start with this year's award, while the story is there for Messi to win his eighth Ballon d'Or, especially after winning his first World Cup with Argentina last year, but you simply cannot ignore Erling Haaland.

While he didn't feature at the World Cup, Haaland's influence over Manchester City's treble-winning side was clear for all to see, with the Norwegian scoring a staggering 53 goals in 55 games in all competitions for his new side.

Messi is the GOAT of football, there's no denying that, but when it comes to the discussion of the best player in the world last season, Haaland is the only real answer.

14 2024 - Jude Bellingham

The midfield machine comes into his own by 2024 and wins his first Ballon d'Or, becoming the first Englishman to do so since Michael Owen in 2001.

With a Champions League trophy under his belt with Real Madrid and victory in the 2024 European Championship with England, it's a no-brainer that Jude Bellingham, now the best midfielder in the world, is recognised as the best player that year.

13 2025 - Kylian Mbappe

With pace that blurs the lines of reality and a finishing touch to rival the greats, Mbappé’s outstanding season for PSG and later Real Madrid, coupled with his influential role for France on the international stage, sees him finally grab the Ballon d'Or.

But will it be his last?

12 2026 - Kylian Mbappe

No it won't...

After lifting the Champions League with Real Madrid and later the World Cup with France, the 2026 Ballon d'Or was only ever going to go to Kylian Mbappe, for the second year running.

With Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo now out of the picture, Mbappe will widely be recognised as one of the best players in the world, and should find himself receiving the individual accolades to back that up.

11 2027 - Phil Foden

By 2027, the Manchester City magician will likely be regarded as one of the best, if not the single best, player in the world.

Foden will find himself as the heir to Kevin De Bruyne's throne, and with City likely to dominate club football and England looking to make their mark on the international stage, that can only mean he'll start picking up individual awards.

A permanent move into midfielder for the 'Stockport Iniesta' will see Foden live up to his name and win his first Ballon d'Or in 2027.

10 2028 - Gavi

A gem from Barcelona's La Masia, it's hard to believe that in 2028, Gavi will still only be 23 years of age.

The midfielder will be dominating in the centre of the park for Barcelona for the better part of the next two decades, drawing comparisons with Xavi and Andres Iniesta.

By 2028, with Spain set to dominate international football once again, Gavi will lead his country to glory in the 2028 Euros, and will win the Ballon d'Or later on that year as a result.

9 2029 - Erling Haaland

By this point, Haaland will have quit Man City for Real Madrid and despite approaching the tail end of his career, will still be banging in goals for fun.

With Real Madrid winning the Champions League and La Liga once again, and Haaland playing a pivotal role in both, the 2029 Ballon d'Or really becomes his to lose.

8 2030 - Vinicius Jr

Brazil have some of the most exciting young talent in the world, and if all goes to plan, should be winning the World Cup in 2030.

The star of that team, just as it is now, will be Vinicius Jr, whose exploits for his international team and PSG, his new club side, should see him win his first of the prestigious awards.

Vinicius, in winning the award in 2030, will also become the first non-European player to be given the prestigious trophy since Lionel Messi in 2021.

7 2031 - Evan Ferguson

By 2031, Evan Ferguson will be one of the best strikers on the planet, and the new Manchester United striker will have taken his side to their first Premier League and Champions League double since 2008.

After eight years playing in England's top-flight too, Ferguson will be closing in on Alan Shearer's all-time Premier League goal-scoring record, which looks certain to be broken in a short space of time.

6 2032 - Kylian Mbappe

Fresh off guiding his national team to victory in the 2032 European Championship, France captain Kylian Mbappe will retire from football with the 2032 Ballon d'Or to his name, ending his career with three.

Mbappe, who will be 34 by that stage, will have done all there is to do in the world of football, finishing his playing career with a Premier League trophy with Chelsea, as well as a plethora of personal accolades, including a Ballon d'Or.

5 2033 - Florian Wirtz

Wirtz will be 30-years-old by 2033, and despite having an injury-plagued career, will show the world how good he is by this stage.

Impressing with Barcelona, as well as Germany on the international stage, Wirtz will take his rightly place as one of football's best players.

4 2034 - Jamal Musiala

Winning the 2034 World Cup with Germany, a 31-year-old Musiala becomes the second German to win the Ballon d'Or in two years, following in the footsteps of the aforementioned Wirtz.

Musiala, who is playing for Liverpool in the Premier League by this stage, has conquered German football with Bayern Munich, but quit the club to try his hand at English football.

3 2035 - Evan Ferguson

ReutersConnect

Fresh off breaking Alan Shearer's Premier League goal-scoring record, Ferguson left Man United to try his hand at European football, joining Spanish giants Real Madrid.

The Irishman ended up scoring over 30 goals in La Liga that year, helping Los Blancos win the league for the first time in four years, with a Champions League trophy also ended up in the Spanish capital.

By this stage, Ferguson will go down as one of the best strikers of his generation, and arguably of the 21st century, with two Ballon d'Ors now to his name.

2 2036 - Lamine Yamal

GettyImages

Still not 30, Yamal will finally break out onto the scene as the best player in the world by 2036, helping Barcelona take both the Champions League and La Liga titles away from arch-rivals Real Madrid.

Staying true to his boyhood club, Yamal rejected offers from the Premier League and Saudi Arabia to stay with Barcelona, helping the side dominate world football once again.

A win in the 2036 Euros too for Spain cemented Yamal as the best player in the world that year, giving him his first Ballon d'Or award.

1 2037 - Lamine Yamal

Becoming the first man to win back-to-back Ballon d'Ors since Mbappe 2025 and 2026, Yamal is one again recognised as the best player in the world in 2037, just as he's breaking into his 30s.

While Barcelona miss out on the Champions League, a retention of the La Liga title, and Yamal's impressive performances across the season mean that, when all is said and done, he ends up with two Ballon d'Or trophies to his name.

The world of football is ever-evolving, and while our predictions are based on current trajectories and potential, the beauty of the sport lies in its unpredictability, and it's almost impossible that we'll get them all right.

Will a dark horse emerge? Or will our predictions stand the test of time? Only the beautiful game will tell, and we simply cannot wait to find out.