Cristiano Ronaldo’s outstanding 2007/08 season at Manchester United has been voted the greatest Ballon d’Or-winning campaign of all time, following a fan poll that placed his maiden triumph ahead of Lionel Messi’s record-breaking year in 2012.
Ronaldo topped the Ballon d’Or of All Time (BOAT) vote after scoring 42 goals in all competitions and helping Manchester United secure both the Premier League and UEFA Champions League titles under Sir Alex Ferguson.
The Portuguese forward, then 23, scored 31 goals in the Premier League to finish as the competition’s leading scorer, while his eight goals in the Champions League helped United reach the final against Chelsea in Moscow.
He scored United’s opening goal in the final with a first-half header before Chelsea equalised through Frank Lampard. The match ended 1-1 after extra time, with United winning 6-5 on penalties after goalkeeper Edwin van der Sar saved Nicolas Anelka’s decisive spot-kick.
Ronaldo also finished as the Champions League’s joint-top scorer with eight goals and collected the European Golden Shoe for his domestic league performances.
His individual achievements culminated in December 2008, when he won his first Ballon d’Or, becoming the first Manchester United player to receive the award since George Best in 1968. Ronaldo finished ahead of Barcelona’s Lionel Messi and Liverpool’s Fernando Torres in the original 2008 voting.
The latest BOAT poll revisited historic Ballon d’Or-winning seasons rather than determining the best player across entire careers. Ronaldo’s 2007/08 campaign emerged on top, with Messi’s 2012 triumph finishing second and Ronaldo’s 2017 campaign taking third place.
Messi’s 2012 season was marked by his extraordinary goalscoring record, with the Argentine scoring 91 goals for club and country during the calendar year. His campaign finished behind Ronaldo’s 2008 achievement in the fan vote.
Other campaigns featuring prominently included Messi’s 2023 triumph, which ranked fourth, and Ronaldo’s 2016 season, which placed fifth. Ronaldo’s 2014 campaign came sixth, while Messi’s 2015 season finished seventh.
The rankings also included legendary players from previous generations. Ronaldo Nazário’s 2002 campaign ranked 13th, while Johan Cruyff’s 1974 season finished 17th and Michel Platini’s 1984 campaign placed 18th.
Other former Ballon d’Or winners featured in the poll included Alfredo Di Stéfano, Franz Beckenbauer, Marco van Basten, Karl-Heinz Rummenigge and Kevin Keegan.
The BOAT initiative offered fans an opportunity to compare 32 Ballon d’Or-winning campaigns from 10 multiple-time recipients of the award. Its outcome celebrates Ronaldo’s 2007/08 achievements but remains separate from the official Ballon d’Or honours.
Ronaldo has won the official men’s Ballon d’Or five times, in 2008, 2013, 2014, 2016 and 2017. Messi leads the all-time tally with eight victories, having won in 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2015, 2019, 2021 and 2023.
The poll’s outcome therefore recognises Ronaldo’s 2008 season as the public vote’s leading campaign without changing the official honours or the players’ career award totals.
