Modric, Ronaldo headline Ballon d'Or 30 nominees list

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FIFA best player of the year Luka Modric remains on track for a second major award after he was named among 30 nominees for the Ballon d'Or Award by France Football magazine, alongside the likes of ex-Real Madrid teammate Cristiano Ronaldo, Barcelona's Lionel Messi and Liverpool's Mohamed Salah on Monday.

Modric, a World Cup runner-up with Croatia, beat Juventus' Ronaldo and Salah to win the FIFA prize last month after Messi was surprisingly left off the final three-man list.

Nominees for Ballon d'Or award. /Screenshot from France Football Magazine website

Ronaldo, currently facing allegations of rape dating back to 2009 that he strenuously denies, has already won the Ballon d'Or five times and is the current holder of the award. Messi has also won the award on five occasions.

Nominees for Ballon d'Or award. /Screenshot from France Football Magazine website

FIFA split from the Ballon d'Or in 2016 to launch its own set of awards. The winner of the prestigious Ballon d'Or organised by France Football magazine will be announced on December 3.

Real Madrid and Wales forward Gareth Bale and Manchester City's Belgium midfielder Kevin De Bruyne also featured among a list of familiar names.

France World Cup winners Paul Pogba, N'Golo Kante, Antoine Griezmann, Kylian Mbappe, Raphael Varane, one of the Real Madrid contingent, and captain Hugo Lloris have also been nominated.

Nominees for Ballon d'Or award. /Screenshot from France Football Magazine website

A panel of journalists select the winner of the Ballon d'Or, which was first established in 1956 and will this year feature a women's award for the first time, to be decided from a shortlist of 15 players.

The award merged with FIFA's World Player of the Year prize from 2010-15 to create the FIFA Ballon d'Or, but returned to France Football in 2016 while FIFA established The Best awards.

The winners of the prestigious men's and women's awards will be announced at a ceremony in Paris on December 3.

Former Real Madrid player Cristiano Ronaldo holds his Ballon d'Or trophy at Santiago Bernabeu stadium in Madrid on January 7, 2017. /VCG Photo

Men's 30 nominees for the 2018 Ballon d'Or:

Sergio Aguero (Manchester City, Argentina), Alisson (Liverpool, Brazil), Gareth Bale (Real Madrid, Wales), Karim Benzema (Real Madrid, France), Edinson Cavani (Paris Saint-Germain, Uruguay)

Thibaut Courtois (Real Madrid, Belgium), Cristiano Ronaldo (Juventus, Portugal), Kevin De Bruyne (Manchester City, Belgium), Roberto Firmino (Liverpool, Brazil), Diego Godin (Atletico Madrid, Uruguay),

Antoine Griezmann (Atletico Madrid, France), Eden Hazard (Chelsea, Belgium), Isco (Real Madrid, Spain), Harry Kane (Tottenham Hotspur, England), N'Golo Kante (Chelsea, France)

Hugo Lloris (Tottenham Hotspur, France), Mario Mandzukic (Juventus, Croatia), Sadio Mane (Liverpool, Senegal), Marcelo (Real Madrid, Brazil), Kylian Mbappe (Paris Saint-Germain, France)

Lionel Messi (Barcelona, Argentina), Luka Modric (Real Madrid, Croatia), Neymar (Paris Saint-Germain, Brazil), Jan Oblak (Atletico Madrid, Slovenia), Paul Pogba (Manchester United, France)

Ivan Rakitic (Barcelona, Croatia), Sergio Ramos (Real Madrid, Spain), Mohamed Salah (Liverpool, Egypt), Luis Suarez (Barcelona, Uruguay), Raphael Varane (Real Madrid, France).

(Top image via VCG: Luka Modric poses for a photo with his The Best FIFA Men's Player Award at Royal Festival Hall in London on September 24, 2018. )

Source(s): AFP ,Reuters