With Euro 2020 and Copa America over and the domestic campaign well underway, we now know which players are in with a realistic shout of lifting the Ballon d’Or later this year.

There are plenty of stars who will hope to pick up a good few votes after strong seasons, but there are already a few emerging from the chasing pack as undisputed favourites to take home the greatest individual prize in football.

Here’s a ranked run-down of the favourites as it stands.

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Some excellent showings at the Copa America dragged Neymar’s name back into this conversation.

However, he needed a much better start to this season with PSG than he had last year to have any chance – and he’s not managed it.

Federico Chiesa really shone towards the end of Euro 2020, and now there are more eyes on him than ever before. Gianluigi Donnarumma may have bagged the Euros Player of the Tournament, but in terms of attackers, no-one was more important for the Azzurri than Chiesa.

It’s probably a bit early for him to trouble the podium this time around, but expect him to do the business in the years to come.

A regular part of the Manchester City side that roared to Premier League glory (even if it wasn’t his best season individually), Raheem Sterling’s stock rose to a new level with some inspirational performances at Euro 2020.

He was England’s hero as he led the Three Lions to the final but he has not quite managed to carry that form into the new season.

When you score as many goals as Erling Haaland does, you have to be one of the frontrunners for the Ballon d’Or.

The main problem for Haaland is a lack of silverware with either club or country. He continues to score at an incredible rate though, and will be one of the frontrunners for the Kopa Trophy.

Tasked with carrying Real Madrid single-handedly at times, Karim Benzema has been producing some of the best football of his career across the past few seasons.

A big showing at Euro 2020 upon his return to the France team would have helped his cause immeasurably, but what we actually got might actually have had the opposite impact.

He has at least made a very strong start to the 2021/22 season.

The Player of the Tournament at Euro 2020, Gianluigi Donnarumma will be a favourite among many voters.

Now at PSG, the Italian goalkeeper is expected to compete for silverware again this season, and performing on a bigger platform may be what the 22-year-old needs to win another individual prize.

No keeper has won the award since Lev Yashin in 1963. The fact that there is now a separate Yashin Trophy for goalkeepers (also awarded by France Football) significantly reduces his Donnarumma’s chances in the main category.

Having come up short in Ligue 1, the Champions League and the Euros, Kylian Mbappe is going to need something special if he is to win his first Ballon d’Or this year.

It’s no secret that he is one of the best players on the planet, but without those trophies, it’s hard to see Mbappe lifting the prize.

He has not finished outside the top seven since bursting onto the season back in the 2016/17 season.

Cristiano Ronaldo remains as cold and calculated in front of goal as ever.

The Euro 2020 Golden Boot winner has the stats and individual accolades needed to win the Ballon d’Or, but underwhelming showings from both Juventus and Portugal will weigh him down.

2020/21 was arguably Harry Kane’s most impressive season on an individual level. The Premier League’s top scorer racked up 33 goals and 17 assists in 49 games and then bagged four goals en route to the final of Euro 2020.

You can’t ignore those numbers, but you also can’t ignore the fact that England just came up short at the Euros and Tottenham ended the season in seventh.

He may break the top ten, or even five, but the top prize seems unlikely for Kane.

Seen by most as the best creative midfielder on the planet, Kevin De Bruyne was inspirational as Manchester City won the Premier League and reached the Champions League final.

Winning the PFA Player of the Year proves his greatness is acknowledged, but unfortunately for De Bruyne, there are a few players making a little more noise right now.

Romelu Lukaku ended Juventus‘ reign of dominance in Serie A with 30 goals and ten assists in all competitions, but you get the feeling that he needed to win Euro 2020 with Belgium to be in with a real shot of clinching the Ballon d’Or.

If he keeps scoring at a consistent rate for new club Chelsea and the Red Devils win the Nations League in October, Lukaku’s chances of winning might be handed a hefty boost.

When you’re named the Man of the Match for both legs of the Champions League semi-final and the final, you’re in with a good shout of winning the Ballon d’Or.

N’Golo Kante has proved his greatness on the biggest stage, but without the Euro 2020 trophy to add to his cabinet, Kante’s wait for the ultimate honour might go on.

Unlike Kante, Jorginho did end up winning Euro 2020, playing a starring role in Italy’s quest for continental dominance.

When you add that to his Champions League triumph with Chelsea, you’ll see why Jorginho is seen by many as one of the favourites to take home the prize.

He may not be the best footballer purely on talent, but few (if any) have had a better year.

The deserving winner from 2020, it would be nice to see Robert Lewandowski’s successes from last year acknowledged, and he might well end up with this year’s trophy to wipe his tears away.

The best striker on the planet for a while now, Lewandowski has dominated in the Bundesliga and performed at a level higher than nearly anyone else on the planet.

The leading contender to take home his seventh Ballon d’Or is Lionel Messi, who has been on an entirely new level in 2021.

He dragged Barcelona back into the title race, putting up some unbelievable numbers in the process – he ended 2020/21 with 38 goals and 14 assists – and finally ended his international hoodoo with Argentina at the Copa America. It’ll take something special to knock Messi off this perch.

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