Ballon d’Or 2024: Do Barbra Banda and Ademola Lookman have a chance at the FIFA ceremony?

On Monday, the greats of world football will gather at the Théâtre du Châtelet in Paris to celebrate the best moments of the world’s favorite sport and announce the 2024 men’s and women’s Ballon d’Or winners.

Only one African player – George Weah – has won the sport’s greatest individual prize, and while there are several nominees across the continent for this year’s award, are there any real contenders?

Women’s Ballon d’Or: Banda and Chavinga hope…

For the first time in the six-year history of the women’s Ballon d’Or, two African tennis players were nominated.

For context, in the history of the awards, only twice has an African player been shortlisted – a Bay FC player. Asisat Oshoala in 2022 and 2023, but this time the continent has two players ranked in the world’s top 30.

There is no place for Oshoala here, but instead for Orlando Pride. Barbra Gang and Lyon Tabitha Chawinga are bidding to become Africa’s first ever female winner of the award.

In truth, they are both behind the likes of Aitana Bonmati, Caroline Graham Hansen and Ada Hagerberg in the pecking order, although both can recall great performances during the period in question.

Banda scored 13 goals in 21 games for Orlando during the calendar year, including five ‘winning’ goals after her arrival from China in a deal worth £582,000 ($740,000), making her the second most expensive African player in history after fellow Zambian striker Rachel Kundanandji.

Strong rapport with the iconic Brazilian striker Martha Of course it helped. “Communicating with her, being with her is my dream, she always inspires me,” Banda. told BBC Sport.

“She is a legend and a very good person, the way we communicate, the way she treated me like a little sister. This is very cool.”

Despite Zambia’s early exit from the Olympics, she again proved she is a force of nature, scoring another hat-trick (to join the two she scored in Japan three years ago), becoming the first woman in history to score three goals in an Olympics games. three separate matches in the tournament.

She finished the campaign with four goals, second only to fellow Ballon d’Or nominee. Marie Antoinette Katotoreaffirming her place among the sport’s top women but appears to be falling behind the 2024 awards frontrunners.

Also competing in the Chinese Women’s Super League, Chawinga becomes the first Malawian to claim the Ballon d’Or, having starred in Europe in recent years.

She was Ligue 1 Women’s top scorer and top scorer last season, scoring 19 goals for Paris Saint-Germain while on loan from Wuhan Jianghan University, and was rightly named PSG’s Player of the Season after a string of outstanding performances in the Champions League. . .

After moving to Lyon in July, Chawinga is already starting to write the next chapter of her career in France, although she appears to have no chance of winning the Ballon d’Or.

Meanwhile her sister Temwa Chawinga Kansas City Current will be looking forward to nominations next year after becoming the NWSL’s single-season record scorer this month, surpassing Sam Kerr. She also became the first player to score goals against every NSWL opponent in a single season.

Men’s Ballon d’Or: Lookman is the underdog

This year, only one African player was nominated for the main individual prize in the men’s match – the Atalanta and Nigeria national team forward. Ademola Lookman included in the 30-man shortlist published by FIFA in early September.

Lookman may not be the most prominent or famous African player, but his potential rivals are not. Mohamed Salah, Victor Osimhen And Mohammed Qudushe did receive a big reward in 2024.

Lookman was man of the match as Atalanta demolished Bayer Leverkusen – ending their record 51-match unbeaten run – in the Europa League final, putting in a stunning individual performance and scoring a hat-trick as the Italians won their first silverware on the continent.

As a player who struggled to find his place in the game, failing to truly realize the potential of his youth against the likes of Everton, Fulham and Leicester City, Wideman broke a series of records with a spectacular performance spirit of the game in major tournaments. continental exhibit.

He was the first player to score a hat-trick in a Europa League (formerly UEFA Cup) final since 1975, and the first African player to ever score multiple goals in the final of a major European continental tournament.

“Obviously that night, let’s say I was walking on air, everything was just great,” he said. told Sky Sports. “That night was probably my biggest achievement and also playing for Nigeria, representing my country.

“It was a historic evening not only for me, but for the club and for the city. You dream about these things, achieving such special things.”

Lookman was also named Atalanta’s Player of the Year as they finished in the top four of Serie A and finished the campaign with 11 goals and seven assists in 31 league matches.

At international level, he also excelled at the last Africa Cup of Nations as Nigeria reached the final.

The Super Eagles may have lost the game against Ivory Coast, but Lookman was a wizard in a scintillating forward line supporting Osimhen and was eventually named in the team of the tournament along with his compatriots. Ola Aina And William Trost-Ekong.

Was he really unlucky not to be named the best player of the tournament? Of course, while Trost-Ekong ultimately won the Golden Boot, it was Lookman whose goals (winners in both the Last 16 and the quarter-finals) helped the Eagles overcome an underwhelming group stage showing to reach the latter stages.

All things considered, he was worthy – if somewhat unexpected – of inclusion on the shortlist, although don’t expect Lookman to walk away with the Ballon d’Or.

Indeed, in general, at least among bookmakers and pundits, he is considered one of those “making up the numbers” and his odds are well behind the favorites Vinicius Jr. Rhodri And Jude Bellingham.

However, Lookman – Nigeria’s eighth Ballon d’Or nominee – looks set to be the hot favorite to win the African Footballer of the Year award at the Confederation of African Football ceremony in December.

Indeed, perhaps the only high-profile male African player to take to the stage at the Théâtre du Châtelet on Monday is likely to be Didier Drogba, with the Chelsea and Ivory Coast great already named as one of the event’s hosts.

Other awards…

African players, teams and head coaches were not well represented in the other award ceremony voting categories, with none nominated for either the men’s, women’s club of the year or coach of the year awards.

Perhaps Emers Fahe, who oversaw Ivory Coast’s remarkable turnaround in form at the Africa Cup of Nations on home soil, reviving them after an almost guaranteed first-round exit after replacing Jean-Louis Gassée in the group stage, may be feeling hard about for not being noticed.

The achievement of a rookie head coach rallying a disparate team and carrying them through the gauntlet of the playoffs – who could forget that quarter-final in Mali!? – and then defeating Nigeria in an emotional final at the Stade d’Ebimpe undoubtedly represents one of the greatest fairytale episodes in the history of African football.

Perhaps the best choice in Africa for silverware this evening is South Africa. Ronwen Williamswho was nominated for the Yashin Trophy as the best goalkeeper in the world for the period under review.

Argentina Emiliano Martinez may be the favourite, but Williams cannot be counted out as he becomes the first player from Africa to be nominated for the award.

He was imperious at AFCON, enjoying familiarity with his back line in an all-Mamelodi Sundowns defensive unit and kept five clean sheets in seven matches. He kept a clean sheet in open play in the opening 2-0 defeat to Mali, was named man of the match in the quarter-finals and proved his decisive role between the sticks in two penalty shootouts.

Indeed, against Cape Verde in the quarter-finals, he broke an all-time AFCON record by saving four penalties in one shootout, sending Bafana Bafana to their first semi-final in 20 years.

At the time of writing, given the massive turnout from South African supporters, Williams currently has over 60 percent of the fan vote. according to L’Equipe…but will this affect the judges?

Finally, there is the Kop Cup for the best under-21 player of the year. Although there is African representation on the shortlist in the form of the AFCON winner. Karim KonateSpain’s European Championship hero Yamin Lamal looks poised to win the prestigious prize.