Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo have given away their Ballon D’or trophies for different reasons

Instead of being a celebration of a club’s history, Ronaldo’s trophies have been donated for the celebration of his own achievements on the island where he was born and raised. However, Ronaldo decided to donate his 2013 trophy to the Make-A-Wish Foundation, which grants wishes to children affected by life-threatening or life-limiting illnesses.

The award, which was Ronaldo’s second, went under the hammer at an auction in London in 2017 and was snapped up by Israel’s richest man and co-owner of Atletico Madrid, Idan Ofer, who forked out £513,000 for a piece of football history.

Although Real Madrid won neither La Liga or the Champions League that season, Ronaldo pipped Messi and Franck Ribert to the award, claiming a 28 per cent share of the vote. The Portuguese, who now plays for Al-Nassr in the Saudi Pro League, was at the peak of his powers at the time, scoring 55 goals in 55 games in all competitions in the 2012-13 season.

With Messi and Ronaldo leaving European football behind in favour of stints in the United States and Saudi Arabia respectively at this late stage of their careers, it is highly unlikely either man will win the Ballon d’Or again. Messi, 36, savoured the moment when he received the eighth of his unrivalled career in October.

“I’m delighted to be here once more, to be able to enjoy this moment one more time,” he said. “To be able to win the World Cup and really achieve my dream, I want to share this with all those who were involved,” he said.

“They’re all special these awards, the most special is the team prizes. It’s always special to be recognised. I couldn’t have dreamed of having the career that I had, everything I’ve achieved.

“To be able to have the career I’ve had, and enjoy football as much as I have. I don’t know how much longer I’ll be going for, but I’m inclined to enjoy it. As long as I am fit physically and can compete, I am going to keep doing it.”