It’s that time of year again. FM 19 is nearly upon us, the Beta version is already out, and we can’t wait to get stuck in.
In true Football Manager fashion, we’re already simulating through things to see what the future may hold.
With the announcement of this year’s Ballon d’Or winner now just a matter of weeks away, we decided to use FM to see who could be in line to win the coveted award in the coming years. Read on to see who won the Ballon d’Or every year between 2018 and 2027 when we simmed the next 10 seasons on FM 19.
2018
Winner: Neymar
Appearances: 24
Goals: 14
Neymar certainly didn’t take long to escape Lionel Messi’s shadow after leaving PSG, did he? Our FM 19 sim have him down as the 2018 Ballon d’Or winner here after scoring 14 goals in 24 appearances and recording an average rating of 7.92. A sign of things to come? No Cristiano Ronaldo or Kylian Mbappe to be seen in the top three…
2019
Winner: Cristiano Ronaldo
Appearances: 51
Goals: 27
Not sure Antoine Griezmann will be too happy about this one. Despite having scored three more goals in five fewer appearances, he’s had to settle for second in the race for the 2019 Ballon d’Or, with Cristiano Ronaldo winning the award yet again.
2020
Winner: Lionel Messi
Appearances: 41
Goals: 22
Messi finished? Not yet. This FM 19 sim has him down to gazump 2019’s top two and beat them to the Ballon d’Or in 2020. Him and Ronaldo would be 33 and 35 by this point, respectively. It would certainly be impressive if they were to be the top two by this point in real life and you wouldn’t put it past them.
2021
Winner: Kylian Mbappe
Appearances: 54
Goals: 32
Here comes Kylian with his first Ballon d’Or win in 2021. He’s still at PSG at this point, too, scoring 32 goals in 54 appearances. Ronaldo is in at number two again, while a 33-year-old Robert Lewandowski, who in this simulated version of the footballing world now plays for Real Madrid, also features in top three.
2022
Winner: Neymar
Appearances: 44
Goals: 27
Well, this would be nice for PSG fans. After three years without making the top three, Neymar bounces back to win the Ballon d’Or again in 2022, with Mbappe settling for second place. A 30-year-old Mohamed Salah also features in the top three.
2023
Winner: Jose Vicente (regen)
Appearances: 53
Goals: 40
Our first regen to feature and he shoots straight to top spot to pinch the 2023 Ballon d’Or award from Neymar. Striker Jose Vicente, who Manchester City signed for £78m from Valencia during the 2021/22 season, won a Premier League and an FA Cup with the English club in the build-up to his award. Hats off, Jose. Another City star, Bernardo Silva, also features among the top three.
2024
Winner: Kylian Mbappe
Appearances: 52
Goals: 41
The Messi-Ronaldo duopoly on individual awards is over but it looks like we’ve entered the Mbappa-Vicente era. Kylian strikes back this time, the PSG forward winning the award for the 2024 season, which would be his fourth consecutive season in the top three. Regen Vicente has to settle for second spot and Mohamed Salah is back in the reckoning, snatching third place while with Liverpool.
2025
Winner: Mohamed Salah
Appearances: 44
Goals: 14
Magnificent Mo. If this happens, Salah instantly becomes a Liverpool great. At 33 years of age, the Egyptian finally wins the Ballon d’Or in the 2025 season, beating Mbappe and Vicente to win the award on account of – we can only surmise – his startling record of 30 assists.
2026
Winner: Kylian Mbappe
Appearances: 51
Goals: 29
Still flying the flag for both PSG and France and still just 28 years of age, Mbappe reclaims the Ballon d’Or again in 2026. This time, there are two regens vying with him in the top three. Angel Cortes is runner-up. The striker joined Bayern Munich in the 2025/26 season and won the Bundesliga and the German Cup in his first season with the club.
2027
Winner: Angel Cortes (regen)
Appearances: 45
Goals: 42
This time Cortes takes the award and there can’t be many complaints with a goalscoring record like that. Vicente takes the second spot and there’s a new face in at three – a very serious-looking Manchester United striker called Andy Clarke (remember the name). Well done, lads.
The post FM 19 simulation: the next 10 Ballon d’Or winners appeared first on Squawka News.
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