Ballon d'Or, Messi, Ronaldo, Neuer, Stephanie Roche

Summary

Ronaldo wins Ballon d'Or
Messi is runner-up, ahead of Neuer
Stephanie Roche misses out on Goal of the Year
James Rodriguez wins Puskas Award
Fifpro XI, plus five other awards, announced

Live Reporting

Jonathan Jurejko

Postpublished at 20:01 Greenwich Mean Time 12 January 2015
Image source, Getty Images
As the stellar names of the footballing world presumably trot off into the Zurich night for a glass of red wine, it is time for us to disappear too.
Congratulations to Cristiano Ronaldo, who has been named as the world's best player for the third time. If you're not still convinced, here's a reminder why., external
And make sure you keep across the BBC Sport website later today and tomorrow for all the rest of the Ballon d'Or round-up. See you later!
Ballon d'Or reactionpublished at 19:50 Greenwich Mean Time 12 January 2015
Image source, @MrAncelotti
Real Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti on Twitter:, external Congratulations to my colleague Joachim Löw !! #BallondOr
Ballon d'Or reactionpublished at 19:46 Greenwich Mean Time 12 January 2015
Germany midfielder Toni Kroos on Twitter:, external A great honour to be in the #FIFProWorldXI! I wanna thank all my colleagues @fifpro for their vote!
Who voted for who?published at 19:46 Greenwich Mean Time 12 January 2015
Image source, AFP
Trawling through the list makes interesting reading. For some it is a case of national or club pride, for others it is about picking the obvious option.
Belgium skipper Vincent Kompany sits in the former group, picking compatriots Thibaut Courtois and Eden Hazard as his one-two. So does Uruguay captain Diego Godin, who picked his former Atletico Madrid team-mate Diego Costa.
Unsurprisingly, Wales skipper Ashley Williams picked Gareth Bale, as did his boss Chris Coleman.
Ballon d'Or reactionpublished at 19:39 Greenwich Mean Time 12 January 2015
Germany goalkeeper Manuel Neuer on Twitter:, external Great evening for German football. Ralf Kellermann and Jogi Löw Coaches of the Year, Nadine Kessler Women's World Player of the Year, me in the top three. Thanks to all who voted for me and best wishes to the winner, Cristiano.
Ballon d'Or reactionpublished at 19:35 Greenwich Mean Time 12 January 2015
Image source, Getty Images
Barcelona president Josep Maria Bartomeu:, external Congratulations to the winner of the Ballon d'Or. For Barca fans, Leo Messi will always be number one.
Who voted for who?published at 19:34 Greenwich Mean Time 12 January 2015
Wondering who Scotland manager Gordon Strachan and his skipper Scott Brown picked? Wonder no more....
Strachan: 1) Cristiano Ronaldo, 2) Diego Costa, 3) Arjen Robben
Brown: 1) Cristiano Ronaldo, 2) Arjen Robben, 3) Manuel Neuer
Join the debate at #bbcfootballpublished at 19:31 Greenwich Mean Time 12 January 2015
Image source, Getty Images
Former England striker Gary Lineker on Twitter:, external I see that Roy Hodgson voted: 1 Mascherano 2 Lahm 3 Neuer. You have to love his sense of humour. Ronaldo and Messi are far and away the best players on the planet, how could they both possibly not be in your top 3?
Join the debate at #bbcfootballpublished at 19:31 Greenwich Mean Time 12 January 2015
Times football correspondent Tony Barrett on Twitter:, external Hodgson choosing Mascherano as the world's best player is interesting/confusing on so many levels.
Who voted for who?published at 19:31 Greenwich Mean Time 12 January 2015
England captain Wayne Rooney was a little more orthodox than his gaffer. The Manchester United man went for former Old Trafford team-mate Cristiano Ronaldo as his number one. Toni Kroos, however, was a slightly left-field choice for second, with Gareth Bale completing Rooney's trio.
Who voted for who?published at 19:28 Greenwich Mean Time 12 January 2015
Image source, Getty Images
Earlier I was rather scathing about Lionel Messi voting for his Argentina team-mate Javier Mascherano. But it turns out he has an ally in England coach Roy Hodgson.
The Three Lions boss picked Mascherano, who left Liverpool shortly after he arrived in the summer of 2010, as his first choice. I'm almost speechless.
Hodgson plumped for Philipp Lahm and Manuel Neuer as his second and third choices. No room for Cristiano Ronaldo or Lionel Messi though. Roy?
How the vote workspublished at 19:23 Greenwich Mean Time 12 January 2015
Another reminder for those latecomers about the voting system. Votes are cast by the coaches and captains of all international teams - plus a selection of journalists - from the 25-man long list.
Wales forward Gareth Bale was the sole Briton nominated, along with five men based in the English Premier League.
But - like Bale - Chelsea trio Thibaut Courtois, Diego Costa and Eden Hazard, plus Manchester United midfielder Angel Di Maria and Manchester City midfielder Yaya Toure, were all trimmed at the first stage.
That left a three-man shortlist of Messi, Neuer and Ronaldo...
Who voted for who?published at 19:19 Greenwich Mean Time 12 January 2015
The tactical voting (or stupid pettiness?) between the world's best two players continues. Neither Cristiano Ronaldo or Lionel Messi voted for the other.
Ronaldo's choices were Sergio Ramos, Gareth Bale and Karim Benzema - in that order. Spot the link.
And Messi's picks were Angel Di Maria, Andres Iniesta and Javier Mascherano. Another not-so-hard-to-see connection there. Javier Mascherano?! Even Mrs Mascherano wouldn't have put her husband in the top three...
Who voted for who?published at 19:16 Greenwich Mean Time 12 January 2015
One of the most entertaining tasks after the Ballon d'Or announcement is poring through the complete breakdown of which players voted for who.
Last year Cristiano Ronaldo did not vote for Lionel Messi. And Lionel Messi did not vote for Cristiano Ronaldo. What about this year?
Join the debate at #bbcfootballpublished at 19:13 Greenwich Mean Time 12 January 2015
Image source, EPA
Aidan Williams:, external Ronaldo a deserved winner, can't help feeling a bit disappointed for Neuer, been consistently brilliant lately.
Ryan Lobo:, external Congratulations CR7 - if only he had a better national team he would have probably won a World Cup!
Vote percentagepublished at 19:13 Greenwich Mean Time 12 January 2015
Fifa, being the transparent organisation that it is, has just released a breakdown of all the votes. And it wasn't even close...
Cristiano Ronaldo: 37.66%
Lionel Messi: 15.76%
Manuel Neuer: 15.72%.
CHAMPAGNE MOMENTpublished at 19:10 Greenwich Mean Time 12 January 2015
More from the Real Madrid superstar: "I want to continue to work as I have so far, to try and and win more titles, for my mother, for my father, for my son. To all the Portuguese people out there: I never thought that I would take this trophy back on three occasions. I want to become one of the greatest players of all time."
CHAMPAGNE MOMENTpublished at 19:09 Greenwich Mean Time 12 January 2015
Image source, AFP
Cristiano Ronaldo finishes his acceptance speech with a bizarre whoop that slightly sounded like he might have been saying: "Boooom"! But I could be totally wrong.
His little lad appears from the crowd, toddling on to the stage, then is scooped up into his father's arms. "Ahhhh," coos presenter Kate Abdo.
CHAMPAGNE MOMENTpublished at 19:07 Greenwich Mean Time 12 January 2015
Image source, AFP
Cristiano Ronaldo: "I would like to thank all of those who voted for me, my president, my coach and Real Madrid. It has been an unforgettable year. To win this trophy at the end of it is something incredibly unique."
CHAMPAGNE MOMENTpublished at 19:06 Greenwich Mean Time 12 January 2015
Cristiano Ronaldo is a man used to taking the acclaim of a crowd - but his stage is usually the football pitch, not a plastic plinth in Zurich.
He takes a moment to catch his breath, compose himself, before thanking the world for the award.