2020 Ballon d'Or cancelled as the year cannot be treated as normal
The prestigious Ballon d’Or will not be awarded in 2020 by the organisers France Football as the normal conditions are not met to treat this year as ordinary. While most of the leagues were suspended for more than three months owing to the pandemic, international events were also hampered.
This has been an extraordinary year, hasn’t it? With the Covid-19 outbreak forcing all the major European League to suspend for an indefinite period back in March. The health crisis worsened soon after, even though many of the leagues did manage to start shop following the three-four month hiatus. But many leagues, including the French Ligue 1, the Dutch Eredivisie were terminated midway through the season, with International tournaments like Euro 2020 going along the same lines.
Considering all the factors, France Football, the organisers of the Ballon d’Or has decided not to award the trophy this year for the first time since 1956, as the conditions were not met to judge a winner while the year cannot be treated as an ordinary one.
"For the first time since 1956, the Ballon d'Or will take a break. There will be no edition in 2020, because it turns out, after thoughtful consideration, that all the conditions are not met. We believe that such a singular year cannot - and should not - be treated as an ordinary one,” said Pascal Ferre, editor-in-chief of France Football, as reported by mirror.co.uk.
"From a sports perspective, two months (January and February), out of the eleven generally required to form an opinion and decide who should lift the trophies, represent far too little to gauge and judge; without forgetting that the other games were played - or will be played - in unordinary conditions (behind closed doors, with five replacements, Champions League's Final 8 played in a single game),” added the official.
Argentine wizard Lionel Messi trumped Dutch footballer Virgil Van Dijk to claim his record seventh Ballon d’Or last year.