The 28-year-old has won the prestigious award for the second time in his
career after being crowned the best player in the world in Zurich on
Monday evening
Real Madrid forward Cristiano Ronaldo has claimed the
Fifa Ballon d'Or, beating off competition from Barcelona's Lionel Messi
and Bayern Munich's Franck Ribery to secure the award for a second time.
Although
the 28-year-old Portuguese failed to claim a major trophy at club
level, he has been crowned the world's outstanding footballer over the
course of the last 12 months.
Ronaldo received 27.99 per cent of
the votes from the national team captains, coaches and selected media
representatives, with Messi in second on 24.72% and Ribery with 23.36%.
The
percentages point to the closest race for the prize since France
Football's Ballon d'Or was merged with the Fifa World Player of the Year
in 2010.
Messi had won each of the last four editions of the
award, including all three since it was endorsed by Fifa, while Ribery
played a pivotal part in a historic treble-winning season for the
Bavarians, but Ronaldo's tally of 69 goals in 59 games for club and
country in 2013 proved decisive.
Ronaldo previously won the award
in 2008 as a Manchester United player, but has since finished runner-up
to Messi on three occasions (in 2009, 2011 and 2012).
But as
Messi missed much of 2013 through injury, Ronaldo took advantage as he
helped Real reach the final of the Copa del Rey and the last four of the
Champions League before signing a new deal with the capital club and
enjoying his best-ever season start under new coach Carlo Ancelotti in
the latter months of the year, as well as single-handedly firing
Portugal to the World Cup with all four goals in his side's play-off
victory against Portugal over two legs in November.
And the
28-year-old, who opened a museum in December in his native Madeira to
display his personal collection of trophies, now has another Ballon d'Or
to exhibit alongside his 2008 award.
A total of 184 national
team coaches, 184 national team captains and 173 media representatives
voted for their top three for the award, with five points going to their
No.1 choice, three to their second-placed nomination and one point to
their third.
In total, Ronaldo secured 1,365 points, with Messi totalling 1,205 and Ribery with 1,127.
Video
/Goal.Com/