Ronaldo Leads Ballon d’Or Nominations

It’s been another stellar calendar year for Cristiano Ronaldo and the superstar’s feats have seen him named on the shortlist for the Ballon d’Or.

The Portuguese forward has made the 30-man cut for the prestigious award – which heralds the greatest player of the past 12 months.

Ronaldo was among the first batch of nominees to be announced by France Football – with all 30 set to be revealed throughout Monday.

The 31-year-old has shone for club and country in 2016 – scoring the winning penalty as Real Madrid won the Champions League in May before captaining Portugal to their first European Championship two months later.

Ronaldo is joined by Real team-mate Gareth Bale on the shortlist – with the 26-year-old also shining on the club and international stage.

As well as his role in guiding Real to their 11th European Cup, the forward inspired Wales to the semi-finals of Euro 2016.

Aside from the dynamic duo there is Premier League representation in the form of Sergio Aguero and Kevin De Bruyne.

This year’s Ballon d’Or is judged solely by a panel of journalists after FIFA and France Football parted ways.

In 2010 they merged to form the FIFA Ballon d’Or, a combination of the previous Fifa World Player of the Year prize with the French publication’s prestigious individual prize, but now that is no more.