The Ballon d’Or 2023 ceremony is almost upon us. It is a yearly award given out by the France federation to the best footballer of the year. This year’s Ballon d’Or award is being touted as battle between Lionel Messi and Erling Haaland. Whoever wins the trophy will cherish it forever, but have you ever wondered what is the trophy made up of? Or what the trophy is worth? Or the prize money of Ballon d’Or winner? We have you covered!
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The Ballon d’Or trophy, which is known as the “golden football” in French, is currently estimated to be worth approximately €3,000 (approximately $2,920).
The award has a diameter of 23 cm and a height of 31 cm, and is composed of two brass plates which have been soldered to form a ball shape. The trophy is encased in a waxlike material and is covered in gold. It weighs slightly more than 7 kg.
Ballon d’Or Prize Money
The Ballon d’Or does not appear to involve any monetary awards directly related to the competition. Nevertheless, its participants often receive bonus payments as part of their contractual arrangements with clubs and sponsors, such as Nike. For instance, the Spanish publication El Confidencial reported that Luka Modric, a Real Madrid player, was paid a sum of €800,000 by Nike when he won the men’s award in 2018.
The following year, Der Spiegel published a leaked contract between Cristiano Ronaldo and American sportswear giant Nike. According to the contract Ronaldo had agreed to a €4 million ($3.9 million) bonus for winning the prestigious award. It is worth noting that Ronaldo won five Ballon d’Ors in his career so far.
In 2021, it was reported that Benzema, the presumptive winner of the men’s Ballon d’Or, had a bonus clause included in his contract with Real Madrid, worth €2 million. Additionally, Cadena SER, a Spanish radio station, reported that Benzema’s club-mate, Vinícius Junior, was expected to receive a bonus of €1 million Ballon d’Or payment (USD 995,000) as part of his next Madrid contract.
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