True facts · Real champions · Zero boring bits
โฝ Specially made for Saransh โฝ
Who won the Ballon d’Or? Who has the most World Cups? Messi or Ronaldo? Every answer is in this book.
The Ballon d’Or is a real golden football. Every year, it goes to the best player in the whole world.
Messi. 8 times! Nobody in history has more. Ronaldo has 5. That means for 13 different years, one of these two was the best player on planet Earth.
Ousmane Dembélé of France won the 2025 Ballon d’Or. He scored 35 goals and won the Champions League with his club, PSG.
Nobody knows yet! The 2026 winner is announced on 26 October 2026 in London. Most people think it will be Lamine Yamal… you’ll find out why in Chapter 3.
Wow fact: There is a women’s Ballon d’Or too. Aitana Bonmatí of Spain has won it 3 times in a row โ the first woman ever to do that!
Every 4 years, the whole world stops to watch one tournament. Win it, and your country goes crazy with joy.
In almost 100 years, only 8 countries have EVER won it. Here they all are:
| Country | Trophies | Wins |
|---|---|---|
| Brazil | ๐๐๐๐๐ | 5 |
| Germany | ๐๐๐๐ | 4 |
| Italy | ๐๐๐๐ | 4 |
| Argentina | ๐๐๐ | 3 |
| SpainNew! | ๐๐ | 2 |
| France | ๐๐ | 2 |
| Uruguay | ๐๐ | 2 |
| England | ๐ | 1 |
Spain’s second star is brand new โ they won it THIS summer. Full story on the next page! โ
Wow fact: Pelé of Brazil is the only player EVER to win the World Cup 3 times. He won his first at 17 โ just ten years older than you.
19 July 2026. New York. 80,663 fans. The old king Messi, age 39, against the new king Yamal, age 19.
Argentina’s goalkeeper “Dibu” Martínez was a wall. He made 11 saves โ the most ever in a World Cup final!
Then Spain’s substitute Ferran Torres smashed in the winning goal. Spain became champions of the world.
Messi didn’t win. But he scored 8 goals, won the Silver Ball, and said goodbye to World Cups as a legend. Ronaldo played too โ he became the first man to score in 6 different World Cups.
Wow fact: Little Paraguay knocked out mighty Germany on penalties โ the first time Germany EVER lost a World Cup shootout. Anyone can beat anyone!
The biggest question in football. Here are the real numbers โ then YOU decide.
Ballon d’Or trophies
Goals in their whole career
World Cups won
World Cup goals
Where they play now
So… who is better? ๐ค
Grown-ups have argued about this for 20 years. There is no wrong answer. Pick YOUR champion โ then ask the grown-ups at home, and argue about it at dinner.
Wow fact: Ronaldo has 976 career goals. He wants to reach 1,000 โ no footballer has ever done it. Only 24 to go!
Messi and Ronaldo are nearly done. These players rule football now.
Barcelona · Age 19
Won the World Cup days after turning 19. First player EVER to win the Euros and the World Cup before turning 20. The next Ballon d’Or is probably his.
Real Madrid · Age 27
Scored 58 goals last season. At the 2026 World Cup he scored 10 and became the top scorer in World Cup HISTORY with 22 goals.
Manchester City · Age 26
A goal machine. Huge, fast, and scores in almost every match. His dream: every goal record on Earth.
Real Madrid · Age 23
England’s superstar midfielder. Plays with Mbappé and Vinícius โ the scariest attack in the world.
Next time anyone asks you who won… you already know.
World Cup 2026
Spain ๐ช๐ธ
Beat Argentina 1โ0
Champions League
PSG ๐ซ๐ท
Won on penalties!
Premier League
Arsenal ๐ด
First in 22 years!
La Liga (Spain)
Barcelona ๐ต๐ด
Yamal’s team, again
Ballon d’Or 2025
Dembélé ๐ซ๐ท
Next: 26 Oct 2026
Tap each card to see the answer. No peeking first!
Sunil Chhetri scored 95 goals for India. Only THREE men in the history of football scored more for their country: Ronaldo, Messi and Ali Daei. That’s it. Chhetri scored more than Mbappé, more than Neymar, more than Haaland!
India qualified for the World Cup once โ in 1950. But the team never went! The long boat trip to Brazil cost too much. India has never played a World Cup match… yet.
Your mission: somebody has to be India’s first World Cup hero one day. Why not a kid from Bengaluru who practises every single evening? ๐โฝ
9 questions. Everything is in this book. Can you get a perfect score?