Newscenter Media News Super Eagles forward Ademola Lookman has been nominated alongside 29 other men’s football stars for the 2024 men’s Ballon d’Or award.
The list was announced on the Ballon d’Or X handle on Wednesday.
The Atalanta forward, who scored a hat-trick at the Europa League final last season, is the only African to make the shortlist for this year’s award.
He will battle against the likes of Kylian Mbappe, Vinicius Junior, Jude Bellingham, Harry Kane, Rodri, Erling Haaland, Bukayo Saka and Phil Foden for the title.
Others are William Saliba, Antonio Rudiger, Martin Odegaard, Lautaro Martinez, Cole Palmer, Nico Williams among others.
Read Also: Lookman fires blanks as Mbappe helps Madrid beat Atalanta to win Super Cup
Lookman had an outstanding season with Atalanta, leading them to victory in the Europa League by scoring a hat-trick in the final against Bayer Leverkusen.
He also played a key role in Atalanta’s journey to the Coppa Italia final, though they were narrowly defeated 1-0 by Juventus.
Currently, Lookman is with the Super Eagles in Uyo as they prepare for their 2025 AFCON qualifiers against Benin Republic and Rwanda.
The 68th Ballon d’Or ceremony will take place on October 29, 2024, in Paris.
For the first time, UEFA will co-organize the event, while France Football will continue to manage the voting process and retain the Ballon d’Or title.
Read Also: Lookman wins back-to-back player of the season award
Men’s Ballon d’Or nominees
Jude Bellingham (England and Real Madrid)
Ruben Dias (Portugal and Manchester City)
Phil Foden (England and Manchester City)
Federico Valverde (Uruguay and Real Madrid)
Emiliano Martinez (Argentina and Aston Villa)
Erling Haaland (Norway and Manchester City)
Nico Williams (Spain and Athletic Bilbao)
Granit Xhaka (Switzerland and Bayer Leverkusen)
Artem Dovbyk (Ukraine and Roma)
Toni Kroos (former Germany and Real Madrid)
Vinicius Jr (Brazil and Real Madrid)
Dani Olmo (Spain and Barcelona)
Florian Wirtz (Germany and Bayer Leverkusen)
Martin Odegaard (Norway and Arsenal)
Mats Hummels (Germany, free agent)
Rodri (Spain and Manchester City)
Harry Kane (England and Bayern Munich)
Declan Rice (England and Arsenal)
Vitinha (Portugal and Paris St-Germain)
Cole Palmer (England and Chelsea)
Dani Carvajal (Spain and Real Madrid)
Lamine Yamal (Spain and Barcelona)
Bukayo Saka (England and Arsenal)
Hakan Calhanoglu (Turkey and Inter Milan)
William Saliba (France and Arsenal)
Kylian Mbappe (France and Real Madrid)
Lautaro Martinez (Argentina and Inter Milan)
Ademola Lookman (Nigeria and Atalanta)
Antonio Rudiger (Germany and Real Madrid)
Alejandro Grimaldo (Spain and Bayer Leverkusen)
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