![Ballon d'Or 2015 - as it happened: Lionel Messi beats Cristiano Ronaldo and Neymar to claim fifth award | The Independent | The Independent Ballon d'Or 2015 - as it happened: Lionel Messi beats Cristiano Ronaldo and Neymar to claim fifth award | The Independent | The Independent](https://static.independent.co.uk/s3fs-public/thumbnails/image/2016/01/11/15/ballon-dor2.jpg?quality=75&width=982&height=726&auto=webp)
Ballon d'Or 2015 - as it happened: Lionel Messi beats Cristiano Ronaldo and Neymar to claim fifth award | The Independent | The Independent
![Close-up of the FIFA Ballon d'Or trophy for the world's best football player (exhibited at the future FIFA museum at Zurich Stock Photo - Alamy Close-up of the FIFA Ballon d'Or trophy for the world's best football player (exhibited at the future FIFA museum at Zurich Stock Photo - Alamy](https://c8.alamy.com/comp/FB2Y3B/close-up-of-the-fifa-ballon-dor-trophy-for-the-worlds-best-football-FB2Y3B.jpg)
Close-up of the FIFA Ballon d'Or trophy for the world's best football player (exhibited at the future FIFA museum at Zurich Stock Photo - Alamy
![The FIFA Ballon d'Or trophy is exhibited at the future FIFA museum at Zurich, a few days before the 2015 award ceremony Stock Photo - Alamy The FIFA Ballon d'Or trophy is exhibited at the future FIFA museum at Zurich, a few days before the 2015 award ceremony Stock Photo - Alamy](https://c8.alamy.com/comp/FB2Y39/the-fifa-ballon-dor-trophy-is-exhibited-at-the-future-fifa-museum-FB2Y39.jpg)