On Monday, January 11, 2016, world football governing body, FIFA, will make an important announcement live from the Kongresshaus in Zurich. It is the day when the whole world will know the best player in the planet, both male and female, including a host of other awards. The much-anticipated event will be televised live in many countries across the world. At LiveSoccerTV, we bring you everything you need to know about the event, contestants, including when and where to watch the FIFA 2015 Ballon d'Or live.
Preliminary events
The ceremony will kick off at exactly 5:30 GMT and will be graced by live performances from British songwriters Leona Lewis followed by the 2CELLOS, who comprise of the Croatian duo of Luka Sulic and Stjepan Hauser. The main ceremony will be hosted by Sky Sports presenter Kate Abdo alongside actor James Nesbitt.
The contestants
The last three nominees for the 2015 Ballon d’Or are Lionel Messi, Neymar Jr, and Cristiano Ronaldo. Both Messi and Neymar play for the same club (FC Barcelona, Spain) while Cristiano, on the other hand, plays for their bitter rivals Real Madrid. Interestingly, all the final three nominees for the coveted award play in the same league.
1. Lionel Messi
Lionel Messi is not new to the Ballon d’Or; at the age of 28, the Argentine has been named the best player in the world four times. He comes into this ceremony with an upper hand, having steered the Catalans to win the Champions League, Copa del Rey, La Liga and the FIFA World Club Cup last year, thanks to his 52 goals and 26 assists.
However, he suffered a major injury setback in October when Barcelona were playing Las Palmas, something that kept him out of competitive football for almost two months. Leo will hope to take home his fifth Ballon d’Or, which will also be his first since 2012.
2. Cristiano Ronaldo
The Portuguese ace is the reason why Messi’s dominance in the Ballon d’Or awards was neutralized. The Real Madrid winger has won the award two times consecutively in 2013 and 2014. However, despite performing quite well in 2015 as an individual by scoring 57 goals and providing 17 assists, his efforts did not seem good enough to propel Los Blancos to silverware.
Thus, Ronaldo’s influence, particularly in major games this season, was put in check. However, this does not necessarily brush him off the picture; he could pull a surprise hat trick considering the fact that he has been in great form even as the rest of the squad seemed rather unmotivated.
3. Neymar Jr.
It is no surprise that Neymar Jr has made it to the list of the last three Ballon d’Or nominees. The 23 year old, has been in sensational form for the Spanish giants, having scored 46 goals and provided 17 assists last year. Many football fans and pundits have predicted that the former Santos man will be the one to end the Messi-Ronaldo dominance in this award.
Whether or not he wins it on Monday, the fact that he is only 23 years old is a clear indication that he is set to dominate the global award for many years to come. For this reason, he is widely seen as Lionel Messi’s successor at Barcelona when the Argentine finally hangs his boots in the future, or decides to leave the Camp Nou to search for greener pastures or a new challenge.
The voting process
Initially, the list of nominees had 23 names in it, not until it was trimmed down to just three after a thorough vetting process. The voting process ended on November 20, 2015, and it included national team coaches, captains and a group of journalists selected by France Football and FIFA.
In the process, the voters select their first, second, and third choices for the award. The male candidate with the most votes wins the Ballon d’Or. However, if there is a tie, the award is given to the candidate with the most first-choice votes.
Other awards
Apart from the Ballon d’Or, other awards that will be given out during the event include;
Women’s player of the year
Nominees: Carli Lloyd (USA), Aya Miyama (Japan) and Celia Sasic (Germany).
Men’s coach of the year:
Nominees: Pep Guardiola (Bayern Munich), Luis Enrique (Barcelona) and Jorge Sampaoli (Chile).
Women’s coach of the year
Nominees: Jill Ellis (USA), Mark Sampson (England) and Norio Sasaki (Japan)
Fifa/FifPro World XI
This award goes to the best 11 players in the world, as voted by professional footballers.
Puskas Award
This award goes to the scorer of the best goal of 2015. The nominees are:
Alessandro Florenzi (AS Roma)
Wendel Lira (Villa Nova
Lionel Messi (FC Barcelona)
Watch the three goals in contention for the 2015 Puskas award
Which channel is broadcasting the 2015 Ballon d’Or on TV or Online?
Here is where and when to watch the 2015 Ballon d’Or live:
UK: on EuroSport 1 UK at 17:30 GMT
Spain: on TDP, Esport3, Canal+ 1 / HD / 30, Canal+ Liga / HD, beIN Sports Spain,Eurosport Spain, Abono Futbol at 18:30 CET
Portugal: on Eurosport Portugal at 17:30 WET
Argentina: on FOX Play Latin America, ESPN + Andina, ESPN 2 Latin America, ESPN Play Latin America, ESPN Cono Sur, ESPN Latin America Andina, DIRECTV Sports Argentina, ESPN + Sur, ESPN Play Argentina, ESPN2 Argentina at 14:30 ART
Brazil: on ESPN Play Latin America, ESPN + Sur, ESPN Latin America Andina, ESPN Cono Sur, ESPN + Andina at 15:30 BRST
Depending on your geo, a "STREAM" button may be available close to the kick-off of the Ballon d'Or ceremony. Visit our 2015 FIFA Ballon d'Or gala page for additional broadcast info.
*Note: Live broadcast data is subject to change
Match details, result and original broadcast info
FIFA Ballon d'Or 2015
January 11, 2016 12:30pmZurichThis match has ended. Below are the original Live broadcast details for this match.
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