Ballon d'Or Odds: Who Will Win The Award In 2023?
The Ballon d’Or award is presented by France Football, a French sports news magazine that’s been around since 1956. Between 2010-15, the award was briefly merged with the FIFA World Player of the Year.
The award is based on the best soccer player, as voted on by journalists, coaches, and captains of the teams. The coaches and captains were allowed to vote after 2007.
Below, we’ll look at the sports betting odds for who will win the award and give some analysis for specific players.
Messi Odds-On Favourite To Scoop the Ballon d’Or Again
It’s not a surprise to see Messi atop the soccer betting leaderboard at 1.16. He won the award in 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2015, 2019, and 2021 and should do so again here.
How can he not win after leading his country to a World Cup victory in Qatar? Messi scored seven goals for Argentina, added three assists in the tournament, and was named Player of the Tournament. This was Argentina’s first World Cup win since 1986.
Erling Haaland’s Goal-Scoring Puts him in Ballon d’Or Race
Just under Messi at 5.50 is Erling Haaland, who had a fantastic season with Manchester City. Coming from Norway, Haaland played his first season with the club and dismantled many Premier League records with 36 goals.
To add to his goal-scoring ways, he has 52 over his last 53 games, though he did score just once over his last eight.
Either way, he’s been excellent in the Premier League, FA Cup, and Champions League.
De Bruyne Heads Up Second-Level Ballon d’Or Odds
After Messi and Haaland, we’re getting into the massive underdog territory. De Bryune, also of Manchester City, recorded 10 goals and 32 assists between 2022-23 for the Champions League, Premier League, and FA Cup.
He had an excellent season, but it’s not enough to outshine his teammate, Haaland.
Vinícius Júnior Will Be a Star For Years to Come
Notching 25 goals and 26 assists, Real Madrid 22-year-old Vini Jr. also won Copa del Rey, Club World Cup, and UEFA Super Cup.
He has shown to be a star soccer player, but missing out on the Champions League removes his chances. Don’t worry; Vinicius will be back soon enough.
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Kylian Mbappé Falls Short, But Underrated in Ballon D'Or Odds
Mbappe will always be considered one of the better players in the world, having won Ligue 1 and notched 55 goals and 14 assists. He also won the Golden Boot at the World Cup for scoring a hat trick in the final.
Where Mbappe falls short, though, is not winning the World Cup or Champions League. You can argue that he is higher on the futures betting odds than Vinicius and De Bryune.
Karim Benzema Unlikely to go Back-to-Back Ballon D'Or Wins
Winning the award in 2022, Benzema knows what it takes after this stellar showing with Real Madrid. However, only Johan Cruyff, Kevin Keegan, Karl-Heinz Rummenigge, Michel Platini, Marco van Basten, Cristiano Ronaldo, and Messi have won the award back-to-back years.
Unfortunately, Benzema dealt with injuries in his final season with Real Madrid and missed the World Cup — a brutal blow to his chances at the award. He was excellent at the end of his season, but he’s also headed to Al-Ittihad as of July 1.
