The most coveted individual prize in football is up for grabs with Lionel Messi, Virgil van Dijk and Cristiano Ronaldo among the favourites.
Luka Modric was the winner last year to become the first person in a decade other than Messi and Ronaldo to be recognised as the world's best player by France Football.
Liverpool star Virgil van Dijk had been heavily tipped to extend the dominant pair's fallow period after heroics in the Premier League and Champions League, however Messi is now tipped to pick up his sixth prize on December 2.
Van Dijk was crowned Uefa Player of the Year in August, with Messi named Fifa's The Best Men's Player the following month. Will Ronaldo end the year empty-handed?
Here's all you need to know...
When is the 2019 Ballon d'Or?
The ceremony is set to take place on December 2 at the Theatre du Chatelet in Paris.
Who is in the shortlist
The 2019 Ballon d'Or contenders
Cristiano Ronaldo
After nine years at Real Madrid, Ronaldo moved to Juventus last summer in a deal worth £100million looking for a new challenge at the age of 33 and was named Serie A's most valuable player 10 months later after winning the Scudetto.
Ronaldo finished as club's top scorer in every domestic competition he competed in before leading Portugal to Uefa Nations League glory over the summer.
The forward scored a hat-trick in the semi-final win over Switzerland before captaining the final win over Netherlands in Porto.
Virgil van Dijk
Van Dijk is widely regarded as the best centre-back in the world, with the eyebrow-raising £75m price Liverpool for him in January 2018 now considered a bargain.
Liverpool have been transformed from a vulnerable defence to among the best in Europe, culminating with their Champions League triumph in June of this year after finishing as runners-up 12 months prior.
Such is his calmness in possession, Van Dijk went 50 games without being dribbled past between March 2018 and August 2019, which was key to the Reds' agonising finish as runners-up behind Manchester City in the Premier League after winning 97 points.
Lionel Messi
Messi has another 12 months to celebrate but again found the game's top prizes out of his reach. Barcelona won La Liga once again as Messi was the top scorer across Europe and provided the most assists in Spain's top flight.
However, a semi-final second-leg collapse at Anfield saw Barca miss out in the Champions League once again as Liverpool scored 4-0 to seal a remarkable 4-3 aggregate win.
On the international stage, Messi suffered another semi-final exit as Argentina lost 2-0 to Brazil in the Copa America in July before beating Chile in the third-place play-off.
Latest betting odds
- Lionel Messi: 1/9
- Virgil van Dijk: 6/1
- Cristiano Ronaldo: 25/1
- Alisson Becker: 100/1
- Mohamed Salah: 100/1
Odds provided by Betfair. Click here to place a bet.
Prediction
Past winners in last decade
| 2018 | Luka Modric | Cristiano Ronaldo | Antoine Griezmann |
| 2017 | Cristiano Ronaldo | Lionel Messi | Neymar |
| 2016 | Cristiano Ronaldo | Lionel Messi | Antoine Griezmann |
| 2015 | Lionel Messi | Cristiano Ronaldo | Neymar |
| 2014 | Cristiano Ronaldo | Lionel Messi | Manuel Neuer |
| 2013 | Cristiano Ronaldo | Lionel Messi | Franck Ribery |
| 2012 | Lionel Messi | Cristiano Ronaldo | Andres Iniesta |
| 2011 | Lionel Messi | Cristiano Ronaldo | Xavi |
| 2010 | Lionel Messi | Andres Iniesta | Xavi |
| 2009 | Lionel Messi | Cristiano Ronaldo | Xavi |
The first award was handed out in 1956, with Stanley Matthews beating Alfredo Di Stefano and Raymond Kopa.
