Nigerian and Atalanta player Ademola Lookman is the only African nominee in the 30-man shortlist for the 2024 men’s Ballon d’Or awards released on Wednesday by France Football Magazine.
Lookman is the eighth Nigerian to be nominated for the prestigious award that celebrates the world’s best in men’s football.
Current African Footballer of the Year Victor Osimhen was the eighth best in the 2023 Ballon d’Or list, the highest ranking ever by a Nigerian player.
With his sole nomination for this year’s Ballon d’Or award, Lookman is now in pole position to be crowned CAF Men’s Footballer of the Year.
If he follows the footsteps of his compatriot to win Africa’s best this year, it would be a rare consecutive crown for Nigerian players, since Rashidi Yekini and Emmanuel Amunike won the award in 1993 and 1994 respectively; and Kanu Nwankwo and Victor Ikpeba in 1996 and 1997 respectively.
Austin ‘Jay Jay’ Okocha, Daniel Amokachi, Finidi George, Kanu Nwankwo, Victor Ikpeba and Sunday Oliseh are the other Nigerians who made the Ballon d’Or shortlist in the past.
Lookman has been in scintillating form in 2024. Following an impressive individual performance at this year’s Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) in Cote d’Ivoire, where he scored three goals to help Nigeria’s Super Eagles finish as runners up in the competition after losing 2-1 to the hosts in the final.
Later in the year, the 26-year-old continued his hot streak in the Europe, where he scored 17 goals and notched up 11 assists in all for Atalanta last season.
The Atalanta winger also scored a stunning hat-trick in May to seal 3-0 win over German champions Bayer Leverkusen in the Europa League final played in Dublin, Ireland to hand coach Gian Piero Gasperini his first trophy as a coach, and Atalanta’s second major trophy since their Coppa Italia win in 1963.
That win also ended Xabi Alonso mercurial Leverkusen’s 51-game unbeaten run.
This year’s Ballon d’Or shortlist is dominated by players from Real Madrid, which won the UEFA Champions League, as well as those from the Spanish national team which won the European championship, Euro 2024, in Germany.
The 2024 edition might see a new winner after Argentine’s 2022 World Cup and 2024 Copa America champion Lionel Messi, who won his eighth best player in the world crown last year, was missing from the shortlist.
It is the first time since 2003 that both Messi and five-time winner Cristiano Ronaldo are not listed for the award.
Full list of 2024 Ballon d’Or nominees:
1. Jude Bellingham (Real Madrid)
2. Phil Foden (Manchester City)
3. Ruben Dias (Manchester City)
4. Federico Valverde (Real Madrid)
5. Emiliano Martinez (Aston Villa)
6. Erling Haaland (Manchester City)
7. Nico Williams (Athletic Bilbao)
8. Granit Xhaka (Bayer Leverkusen)
9. Artem Dovbik (Roma)
10.Toni Kroos (Real Madrid)
11.Vinicius Jr (Real Madrid)
12.Dani Olmo (RB Leipzig/Barcelona)
13.Florian Wirtz (Bayer Leverkusen)
14.Martin Odegaard (Arsenal)
15.Mats Hummels (Borussia Dortmund)
16.Rodri (Manchester City)
17.Harry Kane (Bayern Munich)
18.Declan Rice (Arsenal)
19.Vitinha (PSG)
20.Cole Palmer (Chelsea)
21.Dani Carvajal (Real Madrid)
22.Lamine Yamal (Barcelona)
23.Bukayo Saka (Arsenal)
24.Hakan Calhanoglu (Inter Milan)
25.William Saliba (Arsenal)
26.Lautaro Martinez (Inter Milan)
27.Ademola Lookman (Atalanta)
28.Antonio Rudiger (Real Madrid)
29.Kylian Mbappe (PSG/Real Madrid)
30.Alejandro Grimaldo (Bayer Leverkusen)
