NIGERIA AND GHANA AMONG 20 AFRICAN COUNTRIES ELIGIBLE TO VOTE IN 2026 BALLON D’OR

Nigeria and Ghana will be represented in the international voting jury for the 2026 Ballon d’Or, with the two West African nations among 20 countries from the continent eligible to participate in selecting the winner of the men’s award.

Under the voting system used by France Football, the organisers of the Ballon d’Or, the men’s award is decided by an international jury comprising one specialist journalist from each of the top 100 countries in the FIFA men’s world ranking.

Eligibility is determined by a country’s position in the FIFA rankings, rather than by the nationality or club affiliations of players nominated for the award.

Nigeria and Ghana meet that requirement and are among the African nations represented in the 2026 voting pool.

Each eligible country is represented by one journalist, who submits an individual ranking of the nominated players.

Voters assess players using criteria that place individual performances and decisive contributions at the centre of the evaluation, alongside team achievements and the player’s class and fair play.

The system gives journalists from Africa a direct role in determining the outcome of one of world football’s most closely followed individual honours.

Nigeria and Ghana are joined by several of the continent’s leading football nations, including Morocco, Senegal, Egypt, Algeria, Ivory Coast, Cameroon and South Africa.

The inclusion of 20 African countries reflects the position of those nations within the FIFA ranking used to establish the international voting pool.

The voting process for the women’s Ballon d’Or is narrower, with journalists representing the top 50 countries in the FIFA women’s world ranking.

The Ballon d’Or, first awarded in 1956, is organised by France Football and recognises outstanding individual performance in world football.

The award has evolved from a prize originally restricted to European players into a global honour featuring footballers and voters from around the world.

African football has a long history with the award.

Liberia’s George Weah remains the only African player to have won the men’s Ballon d’Or, claiming the prize in 1995 after a standout year with Paris Saint Germain and AC Milan.

Several African players have since featured prominently in Ballon d’Or voting, reflecting the continent’s growing influence at the highest levels of club and international football.

For Nigeria and Ghana, participation in the 2026 jury means their selected football journalists will have a formal voice in deciding who receives the game’s most prestigious individual prize.