Gabriele Marcotti, a popular football analyst, has stated that there are no clear favourites for this year's Ballon d'Or.

He stated that after Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo's supremacy, it has been tough to choose a favourite.


He blasted the award, calling it a 'popularity contest.'

The next Ballon d'Or will be awarded in October in Paris.

Jude Bellingham, Vinicius Junior, and Rodri are all in contention to win the honor.

Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo have dominated the award from 2008 to 2017.

Marcotti criticized the popularity contest on ESPN, saying it's ridiculous.

"If [only] people knew the voting method, who votes on this, and how some of them don't even watch football.

"And we're sitting here thinking, like the Academy Awards,'should win' or 'will win'. I honestly couldn't care less. If I had a vote (which I don't), I'd probably give it to Rodri or [Toni] Kroos.

"After all these years with Cristiano and Messi, you couldn't screw this up because if it wasn't one, it was the other. "Now that they're gone and everyone is flawed, it's strange."