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The nomination of Bafana Bafana’s captain Ronwen Williams for the FIFA Best awards has been revealed, with Manchester City’s Rodri as his preferred choice during the ceremony in Doha on Tuesday.
The South African goalkeeper is celebrating after winning both the CAF Inter-Club Player of the Year and CAF Goalkeeper of the Year awards, selecting Rodri from Manchester City as his top pick.
Williams’ second choice was Real Madrid’s Vinicius Junior, who ultimately secured the award, while his third choice was another Real Madrid player, Dani Carvajal.
Similarly, Bafana Bafana’s coach, Hugo Broos, also ranked Rodri as his first choice, followed by Vinicius Junior and Barcelona’s Lamine Yamal.
Notably, well-known Mzansi sportscaster Robert Marawa chose Vinicius Junior as his top selection, followed by Erling Haaland and Toni Kroos.
In the final tally, Vinicius Junior came out on top with a total of 48 points, trailed by Rodri with 43 points and Jude Bellingham with 37 points.
An overview of the selection process for The Best FIFA Men’s Player award
Initially, a total of eleven players were nominated for The Best FIFA Men’s Player award, chosen by a panel of experts based on performances between 21 August 2023 and 10 August 2024.
Votes were cast by men’s national team coaches, captains, football journalists, and fans on FIFA’s official website, ranking their top three choices.
Points were awarded to nominees based on their rankings (five for first place, three for second, and one for third).
National team captains were prohibited from voting for themselves.
Each voting group—coaches, captains, journalists, and fans—contributed equally, representing 25 percent of the total vote, regardless of the number of voters in each group.
The accolade went to the player with the highest point total.
In the event of a tie, the award would be granted to the player with the most first-place votes from their respective voting group (in this instance, men’s national team captains).
The voting process for The Best FIFA Men’s Player Award was conducted under the supervision of independent observers.
A comprehensive breakdown of the voting from around the globe for the FIFA Best Player Award can be found here:
