France Football have had their annual Ballon d’Or awards since 1956 but 2018 brought the first such female recognition, with Norway’s Lyon striker Ada Hegerberg the recipient.
The vote saw Pernille Harder (Wolfsburg and Denmark) finish second, Dzsenifer Marozsan of Germany and Lyon in third, while England’s Lucy Bronze came in sixth.
Hegerberg said at the ceremony in Paris: “I want to say thanks to my team-mates because this would not have been possible without them, my coach or our president Jean-Michel Aulas.”
“I also want to thank France Football. This is a huge step for women’s football.”
