Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi are reportedly not in the running for the Ballon d’Or. The superstar pair have split the last TEN crowns between them – with Kaka the last player to beat them in 2007.
But, according to leaked information, neither is currently in the top three of the voting at the halfway stage.
French journalist Eric Mamruth claims he has had a sneak peek of the standings, and Luka Modric, Raphael Varane and Kylian Mbappe are the names battling it out at the top.
Real Madrid midfielder Modric, 33, is the current bookies’ favourite having already won Fifa’s The Best award this year.
But Ronaldo, also 33, came second at the London bash, ahead of Liverpool’s Mo Salah.
And it would represent a real shock if the now-Juventus forward – who netted 15 goals in 13 games during Real Madrid’s Champions League winning campaign last season – failed to make the podium.
He, and Argentinian rival Messi, may have been affected by their nations’ poor showing at the World Cup this summer – though Ronaldo did net a sensational hat-trick in Portugal’s 3-3 draw with Spain.
Votes are cast by a group of international journalists with no more than one per country. The winner will be revealed on December 3 in Paris.
