The Golden Ball award is presented to the best player at each FIFA World Cup finals, with a shortlist drawn up by the FIFA technical committee and the winner voted for by representatives of the media. Those who finish as runners-up in the vote receive the Silver Ball and Bronze Ball awards as the second and third most outstanding players in the tournament respectively.
| World Cup | Golden Ball | Silver Ball | Bronze Ball |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1930 Uruguay | José Nasazzi | Guillermo Stábile | José Leandro Andrade |
| 1934 Italy | Giuseppe Meazza | Matthias Sindelar | Oldřich Nejedlý |
| 1938 France | Leônidas | Silvio Piola | György Sárosi |
| 1950 Brazil | Zizinho | Juan Schiaffino | Ademir |
| 1954 Switzerland | Ferenc Puskás | Sándor Kocsis | Fritz Walter |
| 1958 Sweden | Didi | Pelé | Just Fontaine |
| 1962 Chile | Garrincha | Josef Masopust | Leonel Sánchez |
| 1966 England | Bobby Charlton | Bobby Moore | Eusébio |
| 1970 Mexico | Pelé | Gérson | Gerd Muller |
| 1974 West Germany | Johan Cruijff | Franz Beckenbauer | Kazimierz Deyna |
| 1978 Argentina | Mario Kempes | Paolo Rossi | Dirceu |
| 1982 Spain | Paolo Rossi | Falcão | Karl-Heinz Rummenigge |
| 1986 Mexico | Diego Maradona | ||
| 1990 Italy | Salvatore Schillaci | Lothar Matthäus | Diego Maradona |
| 1994 United States | Romário | Roberto Baggio | Hristo Stoichkov |
| 1998 France | Ronaldo | Davor Šuker | Lilian Thuram |
| 2002 Korea/Japan | Oliver Kahn | Ronaldo | Hong Myung-Bo |
| 2006 Germany | Zinedine Zidane | Fabio Cannavaro | Andrea Pirlo |
| 2010 South Africa | Diego Forlán | Wesley Sneijder | David Villa |
Read more about this topic: FIFA World Cup Awards
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