Former France Football editor reveals Robert Lewandowski led 2021 Ballon d'Or voting until final day

The 2020 cancellation decision

Former France Football editor-in-chief Pascal Ferre published details regarding the cancellation of the 2020 Ballon d'Or in his book, "La Face cachée du Ballon d'or". Robert Lewandowski entered that year as the frontrunner after winning the UEFA Champions League with Bayern Munich and securing both the FIFA and UEFA player of the year titles. The decision to call off the award during the COVID-19 pandemic rested on a three-member committee comprising Ferre, Jerome Cazadieu, and Nicolas Manissier. Although Cazadieu and Manissier supported maintaining the competition, Ferre cast the decisive vote to cancel it due to unequal playing conditions across European leagues.

For me, the Ballon d'Or could not take place from the moment it became evident that all candidates did not start from the same line. That means they did not have the same rhythm of competition throughout the season. Some had a break for a few weeks, others a few months, some arrived at the Champions League final tournament with many matches in their legs, others had almost none.

Late swing in the 2021 ballot

Ferre revealed that Lewandowski also came close to winning the award in 2021 before finishing second behind Lionel Messi. According to voting records reviewed by Ferre in his office, the Polish forward held the top position in total points until the penultimate day of ballot collection. The final votes submitted before the official deadline shifted the outcome in favor of Messi. Ferre dismissed allegations that Paris Saint-Germain conducted illicit lobbying on behalf of Messi, calling those claims nonsense while noting that he personally viewed a Lewandowski victory as potential restitution for the previous year.

I still have before my eyes the image of sitting in my office tallying the votes. Just before the end, indeed the day before the final date for accepting votes, Lewandowski had the most points and led the classification. Even though in such situations we naturally remain impartial, I thought to myself that fate was doing its job well here. Since Robert did not get the award a year earlier, he would eventually get it a year later. It would be a certain compensation, especially since he played another season almost as extraordinary as the previous one.

Abandoned honorary trophy and backstage talks

The publication also reveals that France Football briefly evaluated presenting an honorary Ballon d'Or to Lewandowski to acknowledge his 2020 accomplishments. Editorial staff quickly abandoned the proposal after initial internal discussions. Ferre noted that he contacted Lewandowski directly to inform him of the 2020 cancellation before making the official public announcement, while figures such as agent Pini Zahavi and Bayern executive Oliver Kahn engaged with organizers regarding the voting developments. Ferre maintained that unequal disruption across domestic schedules made holding the 2020 contest inherently unfair despite Lewandowski's personal disappointment.

It was not fair in my opinion. And if so, the Ballon d'Or itself became unfair. I had no doubts. I can understand that Robert felt wronged. But it was force majeure, a historical incident that, I hope, will not happen again.

Evolution of the award leading to the 70th ceremony

Ferre addressed the broader dynamics of the Ballon d'Or as the organization prepares for its 70th anniversary ceremony. He observed that recent editions displayed varying levels of competition, contrasting the tightly contested 2021 race with the clear victories of Karim Benzema in 2022 and Dembélé in the preceding edition. Ferre described the prize as a source of intense pressure and emotional investment for clubs and players, noting that the upcoming edition features an open field without a single dominant candidate.