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In an interview released on Tuesday (October 30, 2018), in France Football, Cristiano Ronaldo challenged this year's Ballon d'Or contenders like Kylian Mbappe and Mohamed Salah to emulate he and Messi and dominate football for the next decade. The following extracts from Ronaldo's exclusive interview with France Football show that age has no effect on Ronaldo's football ambitions. The five-time Ballon d'Or winners Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi have championed Spanish and European football for about a decade now. Despite admitting that competition for the Ballon d'Or would be stiffer this year, Ronaldo didn't rule himself out as a favorite contender, which if won would make him the most successful player in the history of the Ballon d'Or. "It'll be the same [names] as usual, but I don't know if Messi will be on the podium this time. So, let's say Salah, Modric, Griezmann, Varane, Mbappe, the French in general because they'

The Golden Ball/Ballon d'Or is on offer as a 30-man shortlist was announced by France Football throughout yesterday. The Ballon d'Or has been the biggest individual prize in football since 1956. The Ballon d'Or is now separate from the FIFA Player of the year award, as the latter was awarded last month (September). The FIFA Men's award was won by Croatia captain Luka Modric, while Brazil forward Marta won the women's award. The Ballon d'Or awards ceremony shall hold in Paris on Monday December 3. The three major player awards are: the Ballon d'Or, the Female Ballon d'Or, and the Kopa trophy - named after French international Raymond Kopa. The criteria for the Ballon d'Or are: players' talent and fair play, their performances during the calendar year and career achievements. Winners of the past 10 Ballon d'Or awards, Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo feature, along with Premier League stars Eden Hazard, Mohamed Salah and Harry Kane.  Vo