Ballon d’Or: Gareth Bale among first five nominees to be announced

Real Madrid and Wales forward Gareth Bale is among the nominees for this year’s men’s Ballon d’Or award.

Manchester City forward Sergio Aguero, Liverpool goalkeeper Alisson, Real Madrid striker Karim Benzema and Paris St-Germain attacker Edinson Cavani are also contenders.

The 30-man list of nominees will be revealed throughout the day.

The Ballon d’Or, a prestigious award presented since 1956, is given to the best player of the year.

The ceremony to announce the winner will take place in Paris on 3 December, when a women’s award will be presented for the first time.

Portugal forward Cristiano Ronaldo, who joined Juventus from Real Madrid in the summer, won last year’s Ballon d’Or.

What is the Ballon d’Or?

The Ballon d’Or has been awarded by France Football every year since 1956, with former England international Sir Stanley Matthews the first winner.

The list is compiled by the editorial staff of the French publication, with the winner voted for by journalists from around the world, with one representative per nation.

For six years it combined with world football’s governing body to become the Fifa Ballon d’Or.

However, Fifa ended its association with the award in September 2016.

At Fifa’s awards in September, Croatia and Real Madrid midfielder Luka Modric was named the world’s best male player, while Brazil and Orlando Pride forward Marta won the best female player award.

BBC