The 100 best footballers in the world have been ranked

219 judges made 8,760 votes in a poll to determine the 100 best footballers of 2021.

Robert Lewandowski has been crowned as the best footballer in the world ahead of Lionel Messi and Mohamed Salah.

The Bayern Munich striker produced more mind-blowing stats in 2021, scoring a record 41 Bundesliga goals in only 29 matches last season. He has continued his form this term, and also helped himself to three goals in three games for Poland in the summer’s Euro 2020 tournament.

Lewandowski may have finished runner-up to Messi in the Ballon d’Or race, but he managed to pip the Paris Saint-Germain star for top spot on The Guardian’s annual list of the best players on the planet.

How was the voting done?

The voting panel consisted of 219 judges around the world that included former players, coaches, technical staff, and journalists.

Each judge had to name their top 40 picks from a shortlist of over 300 players from 2021. The Guardian awarded 40 points for each voter’s first-choice candidate, 39 points for second, 38 points for third, right down to one point for 40th.

To qualify, a player needed to receive votes from at least five judges. Individual votes were to be used as a tie-breaker in the event where two or more players finished level on points.

The 100 best footballers in the world

Below are the final results of The Guardian’s best footballers in 2021.

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