Here is the list of all balon d’Or winners from 1956 to present.
| Date | Winners |
| 1956 | Stanley Matthews |
| 1957 | Alfredo Di Stefano |
| 1958 | Raymond Kopa |
| 1959 | Alfredo Di Stefano |
| 1960 | Luis Suarez |
| 1961 | Omar Sivori |
| 1962 | Josef Masopust |
| 1963 | Lev Yashin |
| 1964 | Denis Law |
| 1965 | Eusebio |
| 1966 | Bobby Charlton |
| 1967 | Florian Albert |
| 1968 | George Best |
| 1969 | Gianni Rivera |
| 1970 | Gerd Muller |
| 1971 | Johan Cruff |
| 1972 | Franz Beckenbauer |
| 1973 | Johan Cruff |
| 1974 | Johan Cruff |
| 1975 | Oleg Blokhin |
| 1976 | Franz Beckenbauer |
| 1977 | Allan Simonsen |
| 1978 | Kevin Keegan |
| 1979 | Kevin Keegan |
| 1980 | Karl-Heinz Rummenigge |
| 1981 | Karl-Heinz Rummenigge |
| 1982 | Paolo Rossi |
| 1983 | Michel Platini |
| 1984 | Michel Platini |
| 1985 | Michel Platini |
| 1986 | Igor Belanov |
| 1987 | Ruud Gullit |
| 1988 | Marco Van Basten |
| 1989 | Marco Van Basten |
| 1990 | Lothar Matthaus |
| 1991 | Jean-Pierre Papin |
| 1992 | Marco Van Basten |
| 1993 | Roberto Baggio |
| 1994 | Hristo Stoichkov |
| 1995 | George Weah |
| 1996 | Matthias Sammer |
| 1997 | Ronaldo |
| 1998 | Zinedine Zidane |
| 1999 | Rivaldo |
| 2000 | Luis Figo |
| 2001 | Michael Owen |
| 2002 | Ronaldo |
| 2003 | Pavel Nedved |
| 2004 | Andriy Shevchenko |
| 2005 | Ronaldinho Gaucho |
| 2006 | Fabio Cannavaro |
| 2007 | Ricardo Kaka |
| 2008 | Cristiano Ronaldo |
| 2009 | Lionel Messi |
| 2010 | Lionel Messi |
| 2011 | Lionel Messi |
| 2012 | Lionel Messi |
| 2013 | Cristiano Ronaldo |
| 2014 | Cristiano Ronaldo |
| 2015 | Lionel Messi |
| 2016 | Cristiano Ronaldo |
| 2017 | Cristiano Ronaldo |
| 2018 | Luka Modric |
| 2019 | Lionel Messi |
| 2020 | not provided due to covid |
Lionel Messi is the player to win the most balon d’Or awards. He has won it 6 times in 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2015, and 2010. Cristiano Ronaldo has won it 5 times in 20008, 2013, 2014, 2016, and 2017.