On Monday night in Paris, Karim Benzema became the only fifth Frenchman to win the prestigious Ballon d’Or for his scintillating 2021/22 season with Real Madrid. Ensconced in the middle of Sadio Mane and Kevin de Bruyne in Théâtre du Châtelet, Benzema was the center of attraction of the event, and his expression exuded the confidence that it was going to be his night alone. 

Benzema also joined his Real Madrid teammate Luka Modric to become only the second player not named Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo to win this award since 2008. He was presented with the trophy by his idol and former coach Zinedine Zidane.  

Barcelona captain Alexia Putellas won the Ballon d’Or feminine for the second time in a row. Manchester City won the club of the year award, while Gavi took the Kopa Trophy for the best U-21 footballer. 

Organised every year by the French magazine France Football, Ballon d’Or is the most prestigious individual award for a footballer. Naturally, the event was graced by the who’s who of the game. The golden ball, this year, was brought to the venue by Alpine’s Esteban Ocon in his racing car.  

Didier Drogba hosted the event for the second time in a row, alongside the 38-year-old French journalist Sandy Heribert. Drogba looked as comfortable in his new role as he was in front of the goals. He also reunited with his old colleague Andriy Shevchenko, who delivered a heartfelt speech about the situation in his war-torn Ukraine. 

Everything about the night was perfect, except for the silly mistake in the numberings of footballers. It was a minor error that first showed up on the screen, and was carried to their Twitter page as well. Sadio Mane was ranked “2st”, while Alex Morgan was numbered “13rd” in the list.  

“Ranked at the 2st place for the 2022 Ballon d’Or Sadio Mané,” read the caption.  

The graphics too needed some attention, as in some cases, the infographic cut off the head of certain players.  

Lead Image: “France Football”