The Ballon d'Or awards for 2020 has be scrapped by presenters France football due to the global coronavirus pandemic
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It will be the first time the prestigious awarding event will record a cancellation since it's founding in 1956.
France Football on Monday 20 July confirmed that the Ballon d'Or awards for 2020 will not take place as "it cannot be treated as ordinary" due to the coronavirus outbreak.
The move was incited by the suspension of football across the world in over three months due to the severity of the Covid-2019 pandemic later in March this year.
A statement from France Football read: “For the first time since 1956, the Ballon d’Or will take a break. There will be no edition in 2020, because it turns out, after thoughtful consideration, that all the conditions are not met. We believe that such a singular year cannot -and should not- be treated as an ordinary one.
"From a sports perspective, two months (January and February), out of the eleven generally required to form an opinion and decide who should lift the trophies, represent far too little to gauge and judge ; without forgetting that the other games were played – or will be played – in unordinary conditions (behind closed doors, with five replacements, Champions League’s Final 8 played in a single game).
"Finally, the equity that prevails for this honorary title will not be warranted, especially when it comes to accounting and preparation : all the award seekers will not be in the same boat, some having seen their season cut short. Therefore, how can we establish a fair comparison? To avoid overly convoluted calculations and projections, we chose the least bad of the options.
"This decision, which was taken of course with all the Group stakeholders, does not delight us but it seems to be the most responsible one. Protecting the credibility and legitimacy of such an award also means ensuring its flawlessness over time.
"The Ballon d’Or will gather again the football big family and enthusiasts in 2021, to relive the happiness that surrounds the ceremonies as we have experienced them in recent years."
In the last presentation of the award for 2019 Liverpool’s Virgil van Dijk was runner-up to Barcelona and Argentina forward Lionel Messi with Cristiano Ronaldo, Sadio Mane and Mohamed Salah making up the top five.
The Dutch defender was being tipped favourite to win this year's prize on his fruitful campaign with the Reds in the Premier League where they've only conceded only conceded 29 goals and recorded three defeats.
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