Although he didn't win any team trophies this season, Kylian Mbappe is still a strong contender for the 70th Ballon d'Or. Has this ever happened before?

Although he didn't win any team trophies this season, Kylian Mbappe is still a strong contender for the 70th Ballon d'Or. Has this ever happened before?

No league title, no cup title, no Super Cup title, yet still able to take home the Ballon d'Or? Whether with Real Madrid or the French national team, Kylian Mbappe has not won any collective honors this year, but after a successful FIFA World Cup, he is still a strong contender for this highest individual award. However, in the history of the Ballon d'Or, have there been players who won the award after a season with no trophies?

According to L'Équipe's database, we have checked the list of past winners: this situation, although rare, does exist. The reason this question is being raised is because the French captain is far ahead in our online poll.

Stanley Matthews, the first Ballon d'Or winner in 1956, is one such example. Later, there was Denis Law in 1964 and Kevin Keegan in 1978. For more recent examples, we can look to Portugal.

In 2000, Luís Figo won this prestigious award without any team trophies for the entire season.

Thirteen years later, Ronaldo won his second Ballon d'Or, and that year he also didn't win any team trophies.

Finally, there is a very special case: this player won the Ballon d'Or in a season where he won nothing, was also the top scorer in Europe, the top scorer in the FIFA World Cup, scoring 10 goals, but did not participate in the final – that was Gerd Müller in 1970.

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