Cristiano Ronaldo Wins B.O.A.T. Award, Beating Messi’s 2012 Season

Cristiano Ronaldo has finished first in the inaugural B.O.A.T. (Best of All Time) fan vote organised by France Football, with his legendary 2008 Ballon d’Or-winning season taking the top position ahead of Lionel Messi’s extraordinary 2012 campaign.

The result gives football fans another major talking point in the long-running Ronaldo vs Messi debate. However, the distinction is specifically about individual Ballon d’Or-winning seasons, rather than an official decision on which player had the greater career.

Ronaldo’s 2007/08 campaign with Manchester United secured the top spot after a public vote. Messi’s 2012 season finished second, while Ronaldo’s 2017 campaign came third, according to the published results.

B.O.A.T. stands for Best of All Time. The initiative was organised under France Football’s Ballon d’Or banner to mark the 70th anniversary of football’s famous individual award.

Unlike the traditional Ballon d’Or, which recognises a player’s performances over a particular period, this vote asked supporters to choose the greatest Ballon d’Or-winning season in history.

The shortlist featured legendary players who had won the Ballon d’Or multiple times. Fans compared individual campaigns from different eras, making the result a celebration of historic football achievements rather than a conventional season award.

The B.O.A.T. distinction should not be confused with the Super Ballon d’Or, the separate historical honour awarded to Alfredo Di Stéfano in 1989. It is also not a new physical trophy presented to Ronaldo.

Ronaldo’s 2008 season remains one of the defining campaigns of his career. Playing for Manchester United under Sir Alex Ferguson, the Portuguese forward scored 42 goals in all competitions and helped the club win both the Premier League and UEFA Champions League.

His performances combined scoring, athleticism, aerial ability and decisive contributions in major matches. Ronaldo also won the European Golden Shoe after scoring 31 Premier League goals, underlining his impact during United’s title-winning campaign.

The season ended with Ronaldo receiving his first Ballon d’Or in 2008. It was the beginning of a run of individual honours that would eventually see him win the award five times.

The B.O.A.T. result recognises how highly voters rated that particular campaign. It does not mean that every supporter, journalist or football organisation considers it objectively superior to every other season.

The most compelling part of the result is the comparison between two extraordinary seasons from football’s modern era.

Ronaldo’s 2008 campaign was built around Manchester United’s domestic and European success, his 42 goals in all competitions and his first Ballon d’Or. His season represented the arrival of a player who would go on to dominate European football for more than a decade.

Messi’s 2012 campaign offered a different kind of statistical achievement. The Argentine scored 91 goals for club and country across the calendar year, setting a widely recognised record for senior competitive goals in a calendar year.

Messi’s 2012 season was therefore a natural contender in a vote celebrating historic individual performances. Nevertheless, voters placed Ronaldo’s 2008 campaign first and Messi’s 2012 season second.

The comparison is not a simple goals-versus-trophies calculation. The campaigns took place in different seasons and circumstances, and supporters may value individual production, team success, consistency or decisive performances differently.

The published final rankings show Ronaldo and Messi occupying all ten positions. Their Ballon d’Or-winning campaigns dominated the top of the vote, with Ronaldo claiming five of the ten places and Messi taking the other five.

The list highlights the extraordinary influence both players have had on the Ballon d’Or era. Ronaldo’s 2008 campaign took first place, but his later triumphs in 2013, 2014, 2016 and 2017 also featured prominently. Messi’s 2009, 2011, 2012, 2015 and 2023 campaigns completed the top ten.

Other historic Ballon d’Or winners appeared further down the overall ranking, including Brazilian legend Ronaldo Nazário, Johan Cruyff and Michel Platini.

The voting campaign opened on 1 October 2026 and closed on 27 October. Supporters selected the Ballon d’Or-winning season they believed deserved recognition as the greatest in the award’s history.

The initiative involved a shortlist of ten multiple-time Ballon d’Or winners. Instead of comparing entire careers, voters were asked to consider specific winning campaigns, which allowed Ronaldo’s 2008 season to compete directly with Messi’s 2012 season and other historic achievements.

Contemporary reporting stated that voting entries cost €1 and that participants were entered into a draw for tickets to the 2027 Ballon d’Or ceremony. The results reflect the preferences of people who participated in the poll, rather than a statistically representative survey of every football fan.

Not on its own. Ronaldo winning the B.O.A.T. vote means that his 2008 Ballon d’Or-winning season received the highest ranking in this particular public poll. It does not establish a universal verdict on the greatest footballer of all time.

Ronaldo supporters can point to his 2008 achievements, five Ballon d’Or awards, Champions League success and remarkable scoring record. Messi supporters can highlight his eight Ballon d’Or awards, his 2012 scoring record, his club achievements and his international honours with Argentina.

The distinction between a season ranking and a career ranking is important. A player can have the most popular individual season in a poll without necessarily being considered the best player by every supporter or analyst.

Still, the result offers another memorable chapter in the rivalry. Ronaldo’s 2008 campaign has now been recognised by voters as the leading Ballon d’Or-winning season in this initiative, with Messi’s 2012 year finishing immediately behind it.

Yes. Cristiano Ronaldo finished first in the inaugural B.O.A.T. fan vote for his 2008 Ballon d’Or-winning season with Manchester United.

B.O.A.T. stands for Best of All Time. The France Football initiative asked fans to select the greatest Ballon d’Or-winning season in history.

Yes. Ronaldo’s 2008 campaign finished first, ahead of Messi’s 2012 campaign in second place. Ronaldo’s 2017 season finished third.

Ronaldo scored 42 goals in all competitions for Manchester United during the 2007/08 campaign, helping the club win the Premier League and Champions League.

Messi scored 91 goals for club and country across the 2012 calendar year, a record-breaking total that made his season one of the leading contenders in the B.O.A.T. vote.

No. Manchester United’s report explains that there is no physical award or trophy. The distinction comes from a public fan vote celebrating a historic Ballon d’Or-winning season.

Cristiano Ronaldo’s B.O.A.T. victory places his 2008 Ballon d’Or-winning campaign at the top of a public ranking of historic individual seasons. The Manchester United forward’s 42 goals, Premier League title and Champions League triumph made that campaign a defining moment in his career.

Messi’s 2012 season, with its remarkable 91-goal calendar year, finished second, while Ronaldo’s 2017 campaign completed the top three. The final list reflects how strongly the two modern greats shaped the history of the Ballon d’Or.

For football fans, the result is another reason to revisit the Ronaldo vs Messi debate. But the clearest conclusion is narrower: in the B.O.A.T. fan vote, Ronaldo’s 2008 season came first.