The Ballon d’Or Féminin, also known as the Women’s Ballon d’Or, is an association football award presented by France Football, which honours the player who’s believed to have had the best performance over the previous season.
It was first awarded to women in 2018, when Ada Hegerberg of Norway became the inaugural recipient of the award.
Australian striker Sam Kerr and French defender Wendie Renard were the only players to have been nominated for the award every year since its inception until 2023.
Controversies
During the 2023 ceremony, the Ballon d’Or was held during the women’s international break, meaning women nominated for the Ballon d’Or were unable to attend. Only seven out of thirty women were able to attend the ceremony. These attendees had games the next day and missed training, but came to accept the award for best club team of 2023, given to Barcelona.
Georgia Stanway called for better scheduling with women in mind so more female footballers could attend. England manager Sarina Weigman also expressed disappointment that the players’ hard work would not be properly rewarded due to this scheduling conflict with international duty.
In 2024, the problem continued, with Weigman, who was unable to attend the ceremony despite being nominated for Coach of the Year, saying, “Of course, that’s really disappointing, because that’s a moment to celebrate women’s soccer and to come together as a whole community in the women’s soccer game, and the whole soccer world.”
Lucy Bronze was also nominated and stated that the Ballon d’Or organisers treat women as a “second thought.” Alongside her, Coach of the Year winner Emma Hayes missed receiving her award while preparing the United States for a match.
Besides these problems, the Ballon d’Or was the only award for women during this event, with no women’s equivalent of the Kopa Trophy, Yashin Trophy, and Gerd Müller Trophy that are given to men. 2022 second-place Ballon d’Or nominee Beth Mead said, “[The Ballon d’Or] is such a prestigious award. But then it was a tick box to have women there, but they weren’t doing it right.”
The Resolution
After the problems, for the first time in 2025, the Ballon d’Or ceremony was held outside of the women’s international break, allowing women to attend. In addition to this, women were also recognised with the Yashin Trophy, given to the best goalkeeper, and the Kopa Trophy, given to the best young player.
Most Wins
Aitana Bonmatí has won the most Ballon d’Or Féminin; she won it consecutively in 2023, 2024, and 2025.
After Bonmatí, Alexia Putellas is the player with the most wins, having won the award in 2021 and 2022.
Wins by Year:
2018:
1st – Ada Hegerberg
2nd – Pernille Harder
3rd – Dzsenifer Marozsán
2019:
1st – Megan Rapinoe
2nd – Lucy Bronze
3rd – Alex Morgan
2021:
1st – Alexia Putellas
2nd – Jenni Hermoso
3rd – Sam Kerr
2022:
1st – Alexia Putellas
2nd – Beth Mead
3rd – Sam Kerr
2023:
1st – Aitana Bonmatí
2nd – Sam Kerr
3rd – Salma Paralluelo
2024:
1st – Aitana Bonmatí
2nd – Caroline Graham Hansen
3rd – Salma Paralluelo
2025:
1st – Aitana Bonmatí
2nd – Mariona Caldentey
3rd – Alessia Russo
The Upcoming Awards
This year, the awards return, and there are plenty of nominees. Here’s a complete list of the 2026 Ballon d’Or Féminin nominees:
Women’s Ballon d’Or:
Selma Bacha
Rose Lavelle
Barbra Banda
Mapi León
Esmee Brugts
Lorena
Klara Bühl
Melvine Malard
Mariona Caldentey
Manaka Matsukubo
Scarlett Camberos
Kerstin Casparij
Temwa Chawinga
Cata Coll
Melchie Dumornay
Caroline Graham Hansen
Alex Greenwood
Patri Guijarro
Pernille Harder
Yui Hasegawa
Vivianne Miedema
Ewa Pajor
Clàudia Pina
Alexia Putellas
Wendie Renard
Alessia Russo
Khadija Shaw
Momoka Tanikawa
Caroline Weir
Tessa Wullaert
Women’s Young Player of the Year:
Veerle Buurman, Chelsea
Vicky López, Barcelona
Felicia Schröder, BK Häcken / Real Madrid
Clara Serrajordi, Barcelona
Lily Yohannes, OL Lyonnes
Women’s Goalkeeper of the Year:
Ann-Katrin Berger, Gotham FC
Cata Coll, Barcelona
Hannah Hampton, Chelsea
Lorena, Kansas City Current
Ayaka Yamashita, Manchester City
Women’s Coach of the Year:
Jonatan Giráldez, OL Lyonnes
Andrée Jeglertz, Manchester City
Nils Nielsen, Japan national team
Pere Romeu, FC Barcelona
Elena Sadiku, Celtic/BK Häcken
Women’s Club of the Year:
Barcelona
Bayern Munich
Club America
Manchester City
OL Lyonne
