When Cristiano Ronaldo took footballing world by storm with 1st Ballon d'Or, 11 years ago

On this day 11 years ago, Cristiano Ronaldo was confirmed as the winner of the 2008 Ballon d'Or, ahead of Barcelona forward Lionel Messi and Liverpool striker Fernando Torres. It was his first Ballon d'Or win after coming second to Kaka in 2007. Since then Ronaldo has gone on to win four more Ballon d'Or and has become one of the best players in football history.

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Manchester United's Cristiano Ronaldo - First Ballon d'Or in 2008

Playing for Manchester United, Ronaldo came second in 2007, behind Kaka, but in 2008 there was no denying Cristiano Ronaldo. He scored 42 goals in the prior season to help United win the Premier League and the Champions League. The then 23-year-old was already a FIFPro World Player of the Year while also winning the domestic recognitions. With his Ballon d'Or win, Ronaldo became the first and last United player to date to claim the Ballon d'Or since George Best in 1968. 

Cristiano Ronaldo's win in 2008 marked the beginning of dominance by Ronaldo and Lionel Messi until the chain was broken by Luka Modric last year. The pair shared 10 victories among them till 2017. 

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Cristiano Ronaldo - Four Ballon d'Or with Real Madrid

Sticking with Cristiano Ronaldo, he had to wait another five years till his next Ballon d'Or win in 2013 when he scored 55 goals in 55 appearances for Real Madrid. He retained it the following year again scoring more than 50 goals for Real Madrid helping them win their 10th Champions League title in the process. Ronaldo went on to add to his Ballon d'Or tally in 2016 and 2017 where he scored 112 goals combined in two seasons and winning two Champions Leagues and a LaLiga title. His win in 2017 saw him tie with Lionel Messi on five wins each.

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Ballon d'Or 2019 - Details

This brings us to this year, where Lionel Messi is once again the favorite to make it six Ballon d'Or victories ahead of Ronaldo who plays for Juventus now. The Ballon d'Or ceremony will be held at the Theatre du Chatelet in Paris on December 2  (1:00 AM, December 3, IST)

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