FIFA World Player of the Year: For many the two decades on each side of the turn of the 21st century is the golden age of football. This has coincided with the FIFA World Player of the Year award presented by FIFA. The below given list includes all winners of the award. Along with the 2nd and 3rd place entries. Given alongside is the club they represented and the points they received.
FIFA World Player of the Year winners
| Year | Rank | Player | Team | Points |
| 1991 | 1st | Lothar Matthäus | Inter Milan | 128 |
| 2nd | Jean-Pierre Papin | Marseille | 113 | |
| 3rd | Gary Lineker | Tottenham Hotspur | 40 | |
| 1992 | 1st | Marco van Basten | Milan | 166 |
| 2nd | Hristo Stoichkov | Barcelona | 88 | |
| 3rd | Thomas Häßler | Roma | 61 | |
| 1993 | 1st | Roberto Baggio | Juventus | 152 |
| 2nd | Romário | Barcelona | 84 | |
| 3rd | Dennis Bergkamp | Inter Milan | 58 | |
| 1994 | 1st | Romário | Barcelona | 346 |
| 2nd | Hristo Stoichkov | Barcelona | 100 | |
| 3rd | Roberto Baggio | Juventus | 80 | |
| 1995 | 1st | George Weah | Milan | 170 |
| 2nd | Paolo Maldini | Milan | 80 | |
| 3rd | Jürgen Klinsmann | Bayern Munich | 58 | |
| 1996 | 1st | Ronaldo | Barcelona | 329 |
| 2nd | George Weah | Milan | 140 | |
| 3rd | Alan Shearer | Newcastle United | 123 | |
| 1997 | 1st | Ronaldo | Inter Milan | 480 |
| 2nd | Roberto Carlos | Real Madrid | 85 | |
| 3rd | Dennis Bergkamp | Arsenal |
62 |
|
| Zinedine Zidane | Juventus | |||
| 1998 | 1st | Zinedine Zidane | Juventus | 518 |
| 2nd | Ronaldo | Inter Milan | 164 | |
| 3rd | Davor Šuker | Real Madrid | 108 | |
| 1999 | 1st | Rivaldo | Barcelona | 543 |
| 2nd | David Beckham | Manchester United | 194 | |
| 3rd | Gabriel Batistuta | Fiorentina | 79 | |
| 2000 | 1st | Zinedine Zidane | Juventus | 370 |
| 2nd | Luís Figo | Real Madrid | 329 | |
| 3rd | Rivaldo | Barcelona | 263 | |
| 2001 | 1st | Luís Figo | Real Madrid | 250 |
| 2nd | David Beckham | Manchester United | 238 | |
| 3rd | Raúl | Real Madrid | 96 | |
| 2002 | 1st | Ronaldo | Real Madrid | 387 |
| 2nd | Oliver Kahn | Bayern Munich | 171 | |
| 3rd | Zinedine Zidane | Real Madrid | 148 | |
| 2003 | 1st | Zinedine Zidane | Real Madrid | 264 |
| 2nd | Thierry Henry | Arsenal | 200 | |
| 3rd | Ronaldo | Real Madrid | 176 | |
| 2004 | 1st | Ronaldinho | Barcelona | 620 |
| 2nd | Thierry Henry | Arsenal | 552 | |
| 3rd | Andriy Shevchenko | Milan | 253 | |
| 2005 | 1st | Ronaldinho | Barcelona | 956 |
| 2nd | Frank Lampard | Chelsea |
306 |
|
| 3rd | Samuel Eto’o | Barcelona | 190 | |
| 2006 | 1st | Fabio Cannavaro | Real Madrid | 498 |
| 2nd | Zinedine Zidane | Real Madrid | 454 | |
| 3rd | Ronaldinho | Barcelona | 380 | |
| 2007 | 1st | Kaká | Milan | 1,047 |
| 2nd | Lionel Messi | Barcelona | 504 | |
| 3rd | Cristiano Ronaldo | Manchester United | 426 | |
| 2008 | 1st | Cristiano Ronaldo | Manchester United | 935 |
| 2nd | Lionel Messi | Barcelona | 678 | |
| 3rd | Fernando Torres | Liverpool | 203 | |
| 2009 | 1st | Lionel Messi | Barcelona | 1,073 |
| 2nd | Cristiano Ronaldo | Real Madrid | 352 | |
| 3rd | Xavi | Barcelona | 196 |
1991 Lothar Matthäus
Lothar Matthäus was the top goal scorer in the Serie A for Inter Milan in the 1990/91 season. The club finished a disappointing 3rd in the league. Furthermore, they were knocked out in the Coppa Italia quarter-finals. However, they lifted the UEFA Cup.
Nevertheless, it was Matthäus’s performance for West Germany that were crowned world champions that stood out. In the season he scored 23 goals and an assist in 46 games across all competitions.
1992 Marco van Basten
Marco van Basten was the top goal scorer in the Serie A for Inter Milan in the 1991/92 season. AC Milan finished on top of the league without suffering a loss. They were nicknamed Gli invincibili for this feat.
In 38 appearances Van Basten scored 28 goals and provided 13 assists across all competitions. This also gave him the Ballon d’Or award.
1993 Roberto Baggio
Roberto Baggio did not top the goalscorers list the season in Serie A. Furthermore, Juventus only finished 4th in the league. However, Juve won the UEFA Cup that year. The Italian finished with 30 goals and 11 assists in 43 appearances across all competitions. He was also the Ballon d’Or winner that year.
1994 Romário
The Barcelona man won the La Liga that season. He finished runner up in the UEFA Champions League and Supercopa de España. With 30 goa;ls he was the league’s top scorer that season. However, it was his teammate Hristo Stoichkov who won the Ballon d’Or. As it was the last year in which the competition was for only the European footballers.
1995 George Weah
With PSG, Weah won the Coupe de France and the Coupe de la Ligue in that season. He only finished in the French Division 1 and reached the semi final of the UCL. He got 18 goals and 3 assists that season in 53 games. This also gave him the Ballon d’Or.
1996 Ronaldo
The Brazilian’s 25 goal contribution in just 21 appearances for PSV was enough for him to win the award. He won the KNVB Cup and finished 2nd in the league.
1997 Ronaldo
The striker scored 47 goals in 49 games for Barcelona, in addition to 12 assists. He won the Copa del Rey, Supercopa de España and the UEFA Cup Winners’ Cup. He was also awarded the Ballon d’Or.
1998 Zinedine Zidane
With Juventus Zizou won the Serie A and the Supercoppa Italiana. However, much of the spotlight was on the World Cup win. He scored 11 times and gave 14 assists for his club and country that season. He was also awarded the Ballon d’Or.
1999 Rivaldo
The Brazilian won the award for his LaLiga title with Barcelona. Despite not finishing the top goalscorer. However, across all competitions he finished with an impressive 47 goal contributions from 48 appearances. He also was awarded the Ballon d’Or.
2000 Zinedine Zidane
The Frenchman won the UEFA Intertoto Cup with Juventus this season. And also the euros with France. He got five goals and three assists in 41 appearances. Luís Figo was the Ballon d’Or winner that season.
2001 Luís Figo
Figo got 40 goal contributions in 50 games that season for Los Blancos. La Liga was the only trophy he lifted that season. As he fell behind Michael Owen in the Ballon d’Or.
2002 Ronaldo
For his 3rd and final entry in this list, Ronaldo did not win any trophy with his club. However, he lit up the World cup with Brazil. For Inter he got nine goal contributions in 16 fixtures. However he got 8 goals and an assist in the World cup winning the Ballon d’Or.
2003 Zinedine Zidane
The midfielder won the UEFA Super Cup, La Liga and the Intercontinental Cup that season with Real Madrid. He got 31 goal contributions from 50 appearances in midfield. Pavel Nedvěd won the Ballon d’Or and Zizou failed to make it in the top three.
2004 Ronaldinho
The Brazilian did not win any trophy that season with Barcelona. He got 33 contributions in 45 appearances for the club. And finished behind Andriy Shevchenko in the Ballon d’Or.
2005 Ronaldinho
This time around he guided Blaugrana to the La Liga title. He got 29 goals/assists in 42 games. In addition to the FIFA Confederations Cup he also got the Ballon d’Or.
2006 Fabio Cannavaro
Disregarding the stripped Serie A title in the season, the defender was trophyless for his club in that season. However, he won the World Cup that year. He scored 4 goals in that season for Juve. Cannavaro was the Ballon d’Or winner that season.
2007 Kaká
Despite a 4th place finish in the league AC Milan won the UEFA Champions League this season. Largely thanks to the 29 goal contributions from 48 games from Kaká. This also earned him the Ballon d’Or.
2008 Cristiano Ronaldo
A stupendous 50 goal contributions in 49 games earned CR7 the title this year. He won the Premier League and the UEFA Champions League with United. He also won the Ballon d’Or that year.
2009 Lionel Messi
Messi’s FCB won the La Liga, Copa del Rey and the UEFA Champions League that season. He registered 57 goals/assists in 51 games that season. Also winning the Ballon d’Or that year.
This is disregarding the fact that the award ran for another six editions being merged with the FIFA Ballon d’Or. However, we will not have a look at those entries. The FIFA World Player of the Year awards was continued from 2015 as The Best FIFA Football Awards.
