Cristiano Ronaldo's Ballon d'Or voting history emerges; Portugal captain has never voted for arch-rival Lionel Messi

Five-time Ballon d'Or winner Cristiano Ronaldo's voting history at the prestigious award has emerged. It has been revealed that he has never voted for his arch-rival and record eight-time winner Lionel Messi.

Under previous rules of voting for the award, Ronaldo - being the Portugal captain - has voted in the Ballon d'Or on eight occasions. However, he never voted for Messi as the winner.

As per Yard Barker, here's how the 38-year-old voted for the Ballon d'Or winner in the following years:

2010: Eventual winner: Messi. Ronaldo, who finished sixth, voted for Xavi, his then Real Madrid teammate Iker Casillas, and Wesley Sneijder.

2013: Ronaldo's votes went to Radamel Falcao, Gareth Bale and Mesut Ozil. Ronaldo won the Ballon d'Or that year.

2014-17: Ronaldo voted exclusively for his then Real Madrid teammates - Gareth Bale, Sergio Ramos, Karim Benzema, Luka Modric, James Rodriguez and Marcelo. Ronaldo won the 2014, 2016-17 Ballon d'Or awards, while Messi won in 2015.

2018-19: Ronaldo voted for Antoine Griezmann, Raphael Varane and Luka Modric. The latter won the Ballon d'Or that year.

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Has Cristiano Ronaldo voted for Lionel Messi in the FIFA The Best award?

Cristiano Ronaldo (left) and Lionel Messi

Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi are widely regarded as two of the best players to have graced the beautiful game. That's amply evident in their FIFA The Best tally, with both legends winning the award twice.

However, unlike the Ballon d'Or, Ronaldo voted for his arch-rival Messi once, but not in first place. Here's how the Portugal captain voted at FIFA's The Best award, as per the aforementioned source:

2016: Ronaldo, who won the inaugural FIFA The Best award, voted for his then Real Madrid teammates Gareth Bale, Luka Modric and Sergio Ramos.

2017: The Portuguese, who won the award again, voted for his Real Madrid teammates again, this time doing so for Luka Modric, Sergio Ramos and Marcelo.

2018: Ronaldo voted for Raphael Varane, Luka Modric and Antoine Griezmann. Modric won the award.

2019: He voted for Matthijs de Ligt, Frenkie de Jong and Kylian Mbappe. Messi took home the award.

2020: Ronaldo voted for Robert Lewandowski, who won the award, Lionel Messi and Kylian Mbappe.

2021: The Portuguese cast his vote for Lewandowski, who won again, N'Golo Kante and Jorginho.