The 29-year-old — who played a key role in Real Madrid’s remorseless charge to a 10th Champions League trophy — beat eternal rival and four-time winner Lionel Messi of Barcelona and Germany’s World Cup winning goalkeeper Manuel Neuer.
Ronaldo had previously won both the Ballon d’Or and the FIFA World Player of the Year awards in 2008, before Messi, who is two years his junior, did the same in 2009. Then, when the awards were combined in 2010, Messi won it another three times consecutively.
But lately Ronaldo has had the upper hand in this rivalry – the likes of which have perhaps never been seen before – as his consistency and that of his club have curbed Messi and Barca’s hegemony. During Real’s triumphant European season, the forward scored 17 times, a new record for the competition, while outscoring Messi in La Liga as well. (Credits: Vanguard, Yahoo News)