First results from the biggest night of the year: the opening part of the Ballon d'Or rankings announced

The organizers of the prestigious Ballon d'Or awards ceremony have officially announced the names of the footballers who finished from 30th to 23rd in the global vote.

Details: The prestigious ranking was opened by Senegalese Al-Nassr striker Sadio Mané and French Arsenal centre-back William Saliba, who received the same number of points and shared 29th place. They were followed in the standings by standout representatives of clubs from Saudi Arabia, England, Germany and France.

• 29th place — Sadio Mané (Al-Nassr and Senegal);
• 29th place — William Saliba (Arsenal and France);
• 28th place — Julián Quiñones (Al-Qadsiah and Mexico);
• 27th place — Bruno Fernandes (Manchester United and Portugal);
• 26th place — Dayot Upamecano (Bayern Munich and France);
• 25th place — Marquinhos (Paris Saint-Germain and Brazil);
• 24th place — Luis Díaz (Bayern Munich and Colombia);
• 23rd place — Nuno Mendes (Paris Saint-Germain and Portugal).

It is worth noting that the positions in the final standings for the 70th-anniversary edition of the award are being revealed in stages ahead of the main part of the gala evening. This year's battle for the coveted prize is expected to be fought between Bayern Munich marksman Harry Kane, Real Madrid forward Kylian Mbappé and Barcelona's teenage sensation Lamine Yamal.

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