Kylian Mbappé finishes in the top three for the 2023 Ballon d'Or

At Paris's Théâtre du Châtelet last night, the 67th annual ceremony of the Ballon d'Or – the most prestigious individual award in football – took place, with several of Paris Saint-Germain's footballing ambassadors shining at the event.

Kylian Mbappé, a French league title winner and FIFA World Cup runner-up last season, came third in the ranking, having ended the 2022–2023 campaign as Ligue 1's top scorer as well as taking home the Golden Boot in Qatar, not to mention making history at the tournament there by scoring a hat trick in the final.

At just 24 years of age, the France international has now been nominated for the Ballon d'Or six times, finishing in the ranking's top ten places on each occasion – a stat that says a lot about his performances at the highest level ever since he became a professional.

Mbappé's placings in the Ballon d’Or rankings:

2017: 7th
2018: 4th
2019: 6th
2020: not awarded due to the COVID-19 pandemic
2021: 9th
2022: 6th
2023: 3rd

In top spot was Lionel Messi, who wins the award for the eighth time in his career. Having been rewarded for his World Cup win as well as his performances for Paris Saint-Germain, the Argentine took the opportunity to say a few words about Mbappé: "I spent two years at the same club as Kylian. We trained and played together, and I know how immensely talented he is."

Finally, one of our newer signings, Randal Kolo Muani, was on the award's list of 30 nominees for the first time in his career, coming 28th in the highly prestigious ranking.

“The Ballon d'Or celebrates the greatest players in the game around the world. We are very proud that two of our 2022–23 men’s team players have been recognised on the podium, reflecting the brilliance of both Leo and Kylian. We’re also delighted to see our summer signing Randal recognised, showing the standards of excellence and distinction maintained at Paris Saint-Germain year on year.”