Image source, Reuters

Second up is the Presidential Award, who will be picked by Fifa president Sepp Blatter. It is "bestowed upon a person or institution that has made a superlative contribution to football without seeking to monopolise the limelight" apparently.

And there is a real mix of previous winners, from archbishops to World Cup winners, over the past five years:

2012: Franz Beckenbauer

2011: Alex Ferguson

2010: Desmond Tutu

2009: Queen Rania Al Abdullah of Jordan

2008: Women's Football

Peter Henebry Jünioør:, external Ronaldo will win no questions asked. He's played too good, it'd be a crime if they didn't give it to him.

G. Russell:, external Lionel Messi. If not, then it should be Franck Ribery. He's too sicccckkkk!!!!

Image source, Getty Images

The first announcement to be made today will be the Fifpro World XI.

Five British players - Leighton Baines, Ashley Cole, Steven Gerrard, Wayne Rooney and Gareth Bale are in contention.

And so are Chelsea's Petr Cech, Branislav Ivanovic and David Luiz, Manchester City's Vincent Kompany, Pablo Zabaleta, Yaya Toure and Sergio Aguero, Manchester United's Nemanja Vidic and Robin van Persie, Arsenal's Mesut Ozil and Liverpool's Luis Suarez.

The three-man shortlist of Messi, Ribery and Ronaldo was named from an initial long list of 23 players.

Wales forward Gareth Bale, plus Arsenal midfielder Mesut Ozil, Chelsea forward Eden Hazard, Liverpool striker Luis Suarez, Manchester City midfielder Yaya Toure and Manchester United striker Robin van Persie, were all trimmed at the first stage.

Votes are cast by the coaches and captains of all international teams - plus a selection of journalists - to decide the Ballon d'Or winner.

Nick Bowhay: Should be Ronaldo this time round, deserves recognition. If it goes to Messi again, they might as well give up awarding it!

Rohullah Rasa: There is only one golden football super star Ronaldo and he will win.

Graham Forster: Give it 5-6 years and maybe Adnan Januzaj will be on this short-list, I predict greatness from this young man but needs to keep his feet firmly on the ground and stop diving so much like Ronaldo did.

Join the Ballon d'Or debate on our Facebook page., external

Image source, Getty Images

Tonight, we will see either a Barcelona, Bayern Munich or Real Madrid player lift that small golden ball. But when it was first introduced in 1956, the winner played for...Blackpool!

England's Stanley Matthews was the lucky chap to claim the inaugural Ballon d'Or, which initially honoured the European - not world - footballer of the year. It was expanded in 2007 to become a global prize.

Camera lights are flashing 10 to the dozen as the stars rock up at the Kongresshaus in Zurich. Barcelona star Lionel Messi is one of the first to arrive as he struts up the red carpet wearing - I kid you not - a metallic red suit. He looks like a Butlins bingo caller....

Anybody who has had the (mis)fortune of watching a Fifa-organised event will know that the world governing body like to string an evening out. But they are not messing about tonight. Here's the drill:

17:30 (all times in GMT): Ceremony begins

17:35: FIFpro World XI

17:47: Presidential Award

18:03: World Coach Women's Football

18:08: World Coach Men's Football

18:24: Fair Play Award

18:29: Puskas Award

18:35: Special Award

18:44: Women's World Player of the Year

18:52: Ballon d'Or

Although you have to wait another two hours until the Ballon d'Or winner is announced, there are plenty of other awards being dished out over the course of the evening. Winners of seven other gongs, plus the FIFpro XI - the men's team of the year - will also be announced.

Image source, other

So the question that everybody wants to know is - who is going to be named the world's best footballer over the past 12 months? That is going to be one of three men - Barcelona's Messi, Ribery of Bayern Munich and Real Madrid's Ronaldo.

Portugal skipper Ronaldo is the overwhelming favourite with the bookmakers after a simply sensational 2013 for club and country. Are they right? Or can Messi or Ribery help thousands beat the bookies?

Don't be shy in telling us, whatever your preferred means of communication is. Tweet using #bbcballondor, post on our Facebook page, or if you still remember those almost archaic things call text messages then send one to 81111.

Hello! Messi, Ribery and Ronaldo - along with the rest of the footballing world's movers and shakers - have dusted off their dinner jackets and buffed up their shiny shoes for the biggest social occasion in the sport's calendar.

Hundreds have converged on Swiss city Zurich for the footballing equivalent of the Oscars, where the planet's greatest players and coaches will be honoured for the thrilling drama which they have provided over the past 12 months.

Expect sharp suits, fancy frocks and slick coiffeurs. Don't expect tearful acceptance speeches - although an outpouring of emotion from Messi/Ribery/Ronaldo would certainly cause the internet to spontaneously combust.

Industry awards ceremonies can be a mixed bag. They can be tedious affairs for those bunged on a table with suited strangers, shuffling uncomfortably in your seat as you make small talk, all the while considering whether to snaffle the last piece of crusty French bread or not. For others, they can be quite raucous as the free bubbly is quaffed at an alarming rate in a rare office outing.

Image source, AFP

With the ability of an average Sunday League footballer, I am never likely to know which category a Fifa shindig falls into. But I'd take an educated guess that the chances of Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo or Franck Ribery boozily stumbling around the darkened room in their gladrags are slim. Welcome to the Fifa Ballon d'Or 2013.