A total of five U.S. women's national team players earned a nomination in this year's 2024 Ballon d'Or Feminin.
This really wasn't a surprise after their impressive gold medal win in the Paris Olympics over the summer, under the leadership of Emma Hayes. The former Women's Super League manager had only two months to prepare for the competition, which saw her named Women's Soccer Coach of the Year at the same prestigious event.
Spain international Aitana Bonmatí became the second player to win the Ballon d'Or for a second consecutive year, following in the footsteps of teammate Alexia Putellas, for her role in helping Barcelona complete a historic quadruple last season.
Since then, French publication L'Equipe has published a detailed breakdown of the points received by each player, revealing the impressive margin by which Bonmatí claimed the title.
However, Portland Thorns forward Sophia Smith was the highest-scored USWNT player, followed by Lyon's Lindsey Horan, Chicago Red Stars' Mallory Swanson, Washington Spirit's Trinity Rodman and Red Stars goalkeeper Alyssa Naeher.
The 24-year-old, who earned her first cap for her national team two years ago, has gone on to make 58 appearances and score 24 goals. Although the USWNT was showered with nominations, the absence of San Diego Waves' Naomi Girma sparked criticism from around the soccer world.
She became the first defender in history to win the U.S. Female Player of the Year award, and played every single minute in the USWNT's journey to winning gold at the Olympics.
Ballon d'Or Feminin 2024 rankings
- 1 - Aitana Bonmati (Spain, FC Barcelona) - 675 points
- 2 - Caroline Graham Hansen (Norway, FC Barcelona) - 392 pts
- 3 - Salma Paralluelo (Spain, FC Barcelona) - 246 pts
- 4 - Sophia Smith (USWNT, Portland Thorns) - 228 pts
- 5 - Lindsey Horan (USWNT, Lyon) - 169 pts
- 6 - Mallory Swanson (USWNT, Chicago Red Stars) - 164 pts
- 7 - Marie-Antoinette Katoto (France, Paris-SG) - 142 pts
- 8 - Mariona Caldentey (Spain, FC Barcelona) - 142 pts
- 9 - Trinity Rodman (USWNT, Washington Spirit) - 137 pts
- 10 - Alexia Putellas (Spain, FC Barcelona) - 130 pts
- 11 - Patricia Guijarro (Spain, FC Barcelona) - 117 pts
- 12 - Barbra Banda (Zambia, Shanghai RCB, Orlando Pride) - 92 pts
- 13 - Lauren James (England, Chelsea) - 83 pts
- 13 - Ada Hegerberg (Norway, Lyon) - 83 pts
- 15 - Khadija Shaw (Jamaica, Manchester City) - 78 pts
- 16 - Tabitha Chawinga (Malawi, Paris-SG) - 70 pts
- 17 - Alyssa Naeher (United States, Chicago Red Stars) - 52 pts
- 18 - Gabi Portilho (Brazil, Corinthians) - 47 pts
- 19 - Giulia Gwinn (Germany, Bayern) - 42 pts
- 20 - Lucy Bronze (England, FC Barcelona) - 40 pts
- 21 - Mayra Ramirez (Colombia, Levante, Chelsea) - 36 pts
- 22 - Glodis Viggosdottir (Iceland, Bayern) - 26 pts
- 23 - Tarciane (Brazil, Corinthians, Houston Dash) - 24 pts
- 23 - Lea Schuller (Germany, Bayern) - 24 pts
- 25 - Sjoeke Nusken (Germany, Chelsea) - 15 pts
- 26 - Yui Hasegawa (Japan, Manchester City) - 11 pts
- 27 - Manuela Giugliano (Italy, AS Roma) - 10 pts
- 28 - Lauren Hemp (England, Manchester City) - 5 pts
- 29 - Ewa Pajor (Poland, Wolfsburg) - 2 pts
- 30 - Grace Geyoro (France, Paris-SG) - 1 pt
How does the voting actually work?
For the 2023/24 season, the Ballon d'Or Feminin was awarded by an international jury of specialist journalists with a representative from each of the top 50 countries in the FIFA rankings.
Each member of the jury placed 10 players in descending order based on merit with each then awarded either 15, 12, 10, 8, 7, 5, 4, 3, 2 or 1 points.
Jurors made their decision based on the following criteria: Individual performances, decisive and impressive character, collective performances and track record, as well as class and fair play. The Ballon d'Or was then awarded to the player with the highest number of points.
This article was originally published on www.si.com as Ballon d'Or Feminin: Full Voting Breakdown Revealed.