Manchester City, Liverpool and Real Madrid stars join Karim Benzema and Edinson Cavani as being the first players nominated.
Sergio Aguero, Gareth Bale and Alisson Becker
During the day on October 8, 2018, the 30 nominees for the 2018 Ballon d’Or will be announced in five-player tranches, along with the 15 contenders for the Women’s Ballon d’Or and the 10 under-21 players who will opt for the inaugural Kopa Award.
The Kopa Award will be voted upon by the 33 surviving winners of the Ballon d’Or, among them Cristiano Ronaldo, Leo Messi, Zinedine Zidane, Ronaldinho, Ronaldo, Luis Figo and George Weah. The two Ballon d’Or Awards will be decided by an international jury of journalists, with AS editor Alfredo Relaño again casting Spain’s vote this year.
The winners will be announced at a ceremony in Paris on Monday December 3, with television coverage from 20:45 CET.
Ballon d’Or 2018 nominees
Sergio Agüero (Manchester City)
Alisson Becker (Roma/Liverpool)
Gareth Bale (Real Madrid)
Karim Benzema (Real Madrid)
Edinson Cavani (PSG)