Cristiano Ronaldo is in the running to win the FIFA World Player of the Year for a second successive year after being named on a 23-man shortlist for this year 's award . The Portuguese winger , who joined Real Madrid this summer from Manchester United for a world record transfer fee , heads a familiar cast of football 's biggest names ahead of the annual gala in Zurich , Switzerland , on December 21 . Champions League holders Barcelona boast six nominees -- defender Carlos Puyol , midfielders Andres Iniesta and Xavi , and strikers Lionel Messi , Thierry Henry and Zlatan Ibrahimovic . Former Barca star Samuel Eto ' o , now playing for Inter Milan , also joins the nominations list . Spain 's La Liga boasts 11 nominees altogether , in addition to the Barcelona contingent there is Valencia 's David Villa , Sevilla 's Luis Fabiano and Real Madrid 's Kaka and Iker Casillas . The English Premier League follows with eight nominees ; England internationals Wayne Rooney , John Terry , Frank Lampard and Steven Gerrard are among those up for the award . Nominees list : . Michael Ballack ( Germany ) , Gianluigi Buffon ( Italy ) , Iker Casillas ( Spain ) , Cristiano Ronaldo ( Portugal ) , Diego ( Brazil ) , Didier Drogba ( Ivory Coast ) , Michael Essien ( Ghana ) , Samuel Eto ' o ( Cameroon ) , Steven Gerrard ( England ) , Thierry Henry ( France ) , Zlatan Ibrahimovic ( Sweden ) , Andres Iniesta ( Spain ) , Kaka ( Brazil ) , Frank Lampard ( England ) , Luis Fabiano ( Brazil ) , Lionel Messi ( Argentina ) , Carles Puyol ( Spain ) , Franck Ribery ( France ) , Wayne Rooney ( England ) , John Terry ( England ) , Fernando Torres ( Spain ) , David Villa ( Spain ) , Xavi ( Spain ) .
FIFA official list of nominations for the FIFA Player of the Year award . The annual ceremony takes place in Zurich , Switzerland on December 31 . Reigning holder Cristiano López of Real Madrid won once again .