Franck Ribery , Lionel
Messi and Cristiano
Ronaldo are the three
final contenders for the
2013 Fifa Ballon d'Or.
The Barcelona forward has won the last four
editions of the award and led Barcelona's charge
to the Liga title last term with 46 goals.
Meanwhile, Ribery enjoyed the best season of his
career, helping Bayern Munich to an
unprecedented treble with remarkably consistent
performances, particularly in the Bundesliga.
Ronaldo will end 2013 without silverware, but
has started the current campaign in the form of
his life for club and country, scoring a total of
28 goals for Real Madrid and Portugal.
The 28-year-old last won the award back in 2008
thanks to his performances for Manchester
United but is currently the favourite to scoop
the prize after ensuring the Seleccao will go to
the 2014 World Cup with a superb hat-trick
against Sweden in the play-off round.
Voting for the Ballon d'Or closed on November
29 after the original period was extended and
the winner will be announced on January 13 in
Zurich.
