Super Eagles and Atalanta star Ademola Lookman has been named in the 30-man shortlist for the 2024 Ballon d’Or award.
Lookman was nominated for the award after a remarkable performance in the Europa League final when he scored a hat-trick for Atalanta against Bayer Leverkusen. He is the single African representative on this year’s list.
Notably, neither Lionel Messi, an eight-time winner nor Cristiano Ronaldo, a five-time winner, are among the 2024 nominees.
Lookman scored 17 goals and assisted 11 times for Atalanta last season.
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The former Everton player also helped the Super Eagles reach the final of the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) in Cote d’Ivoire earlier this year.
He scored two goals for Nigeria, who finished second in the competition after losing 2-1 to the hosts in the final.
The selection is primarily inspired by players from Spain’s national team, which won Euro 2024, and Real Madrid, the incumbent UEFA Champions League champions.
Full list of Ballon d’Or contenders
Antonio Rudiger – Real Madrid
Kylian Mbappe – Real Madrid
Lautaro Martinez – Inter
Ademola Lookman – Atalanta
Alejandro Grimaldo – Bayer Leverkusen
Dani Carvajal – Real Madrid
William Saliba – Arsenal
Lamine Yamal – Barcelona
Bukayo Saka – Arsenal
Hakan Calhanoglu – Inter
Declan Rice- Arsenal
Harry Kane – Bayern Munich
Cole Palmer – Chelsea
Vitinha – PSG
Vinicius Jr – Real Madrid
Martin Odegaard – Arsenal
Dani Olmo – Barcelona
Florian Wirtz – Bayer Leverkusen
Mats Hummels – Roma
Erling Haaland – Man City
Nicolas Willams – Athletic Bilbao
Granit Xhaka – Bayer Leverkusen
Artem Dovbik – Roma
Toni Kroos – Real Madrid
Jude Bellingham – Real Madrid
Phil Foden – Man City
Ruben Dias – Man City
Federico Valverde – Real Madrid
Emiliano Martinez – Aston VIlla
