In the 2013 Ballon d’Or vote, Franck Ribery finished third in the rankings with 23.36%. Barcelona’s Lionel Messi came second with 1,205 votes (24.72%), while Real Madrid’s Cristiano Ronaldo won the precious title with 1,365 votes (27.99%).
According to Franck Ribery, it was unfair that he only finished third in the 2013 Ballon d’Or vote. After 12 years, he still hasn’t gotten over it, because the voting process caused great controversy.
Specifically, initially, the deadline was November 15, but FIFA unexpectedly extended it to November 29, citing the lack of valid votes.
“That year’s Ballon d’Or will always be an injustice. I’m still looking for an explanation. I don’t understand why the voting deadline was extended by two weeks,” Ribery said.
The former France international added: “With the utmost humility and respect, Messi and Ronaldo were not better than me in 2013. Messi and Ronaldo have always respected me and they know I deserve to be at their level. So, with the utmost humility, I have nothing to be jealous of Messi and Ronaldo.”
According to talkSport magazine, 2013 was a memorable year for Ribery when he helped the German team Bayern Munich win 6 historic championship trophies in the Champions League, European Super Cup, Club World Cup, German National Championship (Bundesliga), German National Cup and German Super Cup.
Ribery scored 22 goals and assisted 18 times in 52 matches for Bayern Munich and the French national team. This achievement helped him receive the 2012-2013 European Footballer of the Year award voted by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA).
However, the 2013 season statistics show that Lionel Messi scored 42 goals and assisted 15 times in 45 matches for Barcelona and the Argentina national team. Cristiano Ronaldo achieved even more impressive results, scoring 66 goals and assisting 15 times in 56 matches for Real Madrid and the Portugal national team.
The 2013-2014 season was the last time Ribery scored double digits in goals. He left Bayern Munich in 2019 after many years of dedication, then played two seasons for Fiorentina in the Italian National Football Championship.
In the summer of 2021, Ribery joined Salernitana, but a recurring knee injury forced the player to retire in October 2022 at the age of 39.
