Cristiano Ronaldo has beaten Argentine Lionel Messi in the Ballon d'Or of All Time, but to vote you had to pay. One euro for each vote. Moreover, it was possible to vote multiple times. In this way, CR7 won the BOAT award (abbreviation of Ballon d'Or of All Time), an award dedicated to the best winners in the history of this trophy and created to celebrate the 70th anniversary of the prestigious award. The Portuguese champion triumphed with his 2008 version. Messi, with the 2012 version, came second. And here the Portuguese star celebrated: "Football belongs to the fans! Thank you to all the fans in the world, the Ballon d'Or of All Time is also yours", were the triumphant words of the former Manchester United, Real Madrid and Juventus footballer.
But the problem is that it wasn't about voting for the best footballer of all time, but for the best season among those who have won at least two Ballons d'Or. And, above all, to vote you had to pay a financial contribution. Without any restrictions: the more you paid, the more you voted. This completely changes the situation.
What did Ronaldo win and who was in the rankings?
Ronaldo's post came immediately after the result was announced. A sentence in the style of a people's captain. But this loyal community, his fans, had to take money out of their pockets to vote for him. The choice was limited to ten football legends, who have won the Ballon d'Or at least twice throughout history. Among them were Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo, Ronaldo "The Phenomenon", Michel Platini and Johan Cruyff.
Moreover, the initiative was commemorative in nature. In essence, it did not add a sixth Ballon d'Or to CR7's collection. Since it was a paid vote, open to fans, there was no provision for the award of a physical trophy. This year's real Ballon d'Or went to Harry Kane, who narrowly beat Kylian Mbappé.
The winner was Manchester United's Ronaldo in 2008: 42 goals in all competitions, the Premier League title, the Champions League triumph and the first Ballon d'Or of his career. In second place was Messi in 2012. Third was Ronaldo again, but this time the 2017 version. So, CR7 was on the podium twice, with Messi between the two versions of the Portuguese. A result that brings back to mind the historical rivalry between them, but which does not have the value of an official Ballon d'Or. This is a symbolic award, created for the anniversary. Messi continues to have eight real Ballons d'Or, while Ronaldo has five. This does not change.
Paid voting: this is how the rankings were "inflated"
The uniqueness of this vote was precisely related to the mechanism used. The official website specified that a minimum contribution of one euro had to be paid for each preference. Also, one could vote again. According to data published after the end of the vote, more than 5,000 people had expressed more than one vote. About 300 people had voted from five to nine times, while 44 others had expressed from ten to 26 preferences. This is exactly how the ranking was “inflated”.
The result does not automatically lose its value for this reason, but must be interpreted for what it is: a classification built through a paid online vote, where the number of votes does not necessarily correspond to the number of people who participated. Cristiano Ronaldo has every reason to celebrate a legendary season. But to determine who is the best footballer of all time, perhaps one euro per vote is not enough.
