Ballon d'Or 2025: Who are the world's best footballers?

Mo Salah, Lamine Yamal and Chloe Kelly are just three of the players nominated

The nominations for this year's men's and women's Ballon d'Or awards have been announced and there's a lot of big names in the running.

The Ballon d'Or means Golden Ball and is an award for the world's best players.

Five of England's Euro 2025-winning squad have been nominated for the Women's Ballon d'Or - also known as the Ballon d'Or Féminin.

In the men's category, several Premier League players feature as well as other global superstars such as Kylian Mbappe and Ousmane Dembele.

Let's take a closer look at the awards and who could win one of football's biggest prizes.

What is the Ballon d'Or?

The Ballon d'Or is an annual event where the famous golden trophy is given to the best footballer of the year.

It is voted for by football journalists from all around the world.

Lionel Messi holds the record for the most Ballon d'Or wins - with eight.

While five-time winner Cristiano Ronaldo has the most nominations in the award's history with 18.

Which Premier League stars have been nominated for the Ballon d'Or?

Plenty of Premier League stars have made the shortlist for the men's Ballon d'Or award.

They include four Liverpool players - captain Virgil van Dijk, Alexis Mac Allister, Mohamed Salah and new signing Florian Wirtz.

Arsenal and England midfielder Declan Rice, Chelsea's Cole Palmer and Manchester City striker Erling Haaland are also nominated.

Former Manchester United midfielder Scott McTominay has also made the 30-man shortlist.

The Scotland international signed for Italian side Napoli last summer, where he quickly settled in and became a firm fan favourite.

McTominay won the league with Napoli, finished the season with 12 league goals and was named Serie A's player of the year.

Which Lionesses have been nominated for the Ballon d'Or?

Five of England's Euro 2025-winning squad have been nominated for the Women's Ballon d'Or, awarded to the best female footballer of the year.

They are captain Leah Williamson, defender Lucy Bronze, strikers Alessia Russo and Chloe Kelly as well as goalkeeper Hannah Hampton.

Hampton has also made the shortlist for the women's Yachine trophy - which is the prize awarded to the best goalkeeper.

Last month the Lionesses successfully defended their European title in Switzerland, beating world champions Spain on penalties in the final.

Who are the current holders of the men and women's Ballon d'Or awards?

Last year, Spain and Manchester City midfielder Rodri picked up the men's award.

He became the first ever player in the north-west club's history to win the Ballon d'Or.

The women's award also went to a Spanish midfielder in Aitana Bonmati - it was the second year in a row that the Barcelona star had won the award.

What is the Kopa Trophy?

The Kopa trophy is awarded to the best young player in the world, under the age of 21.

This year, both the men and women's categories have an England star on the shortlist.

Arsenal's Myles Lewis-Skelly is among the names nominated for the men's Kopa Trophy.

The left-back became a first-team regular with the Gunners in 2024-25 season, making 39 appearances in all competitions.

In March, the 18-year-old made his debut for the England senior side, scoring on his first appearance for the Three Lions.

And Lioness and Arsenal striker Michelle Agyemang has been shortlisted for the first-ever women's Kopa Trophy.

Agyemang was the youngest Lioness at last month's Euros and the 19-year-old made a real impact on the team.

She was one of the standout players, scoring a number of important goals for England and her impressive performances meant she picked up the Young Player of the Tournament award.

When and where will the Ballon d'Or 2025 be held?

This year's Ballon d'Or ceremony will be held on Monday 22 September 2025.

The huge event will take place at the Théâtre du Châtelet in Paris, which has hosted the awards since 2019.