Ballon d’Or award ceremony is scheduled for September 22 this year and it will feature an equal number of awards for both women and men for the first time.
Gatekeepers News reports that organisers announced that new categories have been introduced, including awards for the best women’s goalkeeper, the best young women’s player, and the top women’s scorer, either in club or national team competitions.
This year’s ceremony, held at the Théâtre du Chatelet in Paris, will present a total of six awards for male players and six for female players.
Also, there will be the Socrates Award, which recognises actions that promote solidarity and is open to nominees of any gender.
The announcement of nominees is expected in early August.
Last year’s ceremony faced controversy due to a boycott from Real Madrid, stemming from their forward Vinicius Junior not being awarded the best men’s player title, which went to Rodri of Manchester City.