FIFA announced the finalists for the 2015 Ballon d'Or award on Tuesday. Previous winners, Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi, headline the shortlist, while Neymar Jr. received his first nomination.

The FIFA Ballon d'Or is awarded to the male player seen to have the best calendar year as voted by the captain and coach from each FIFA nation, as well as one journalist from each country.

It's no surprise to see any of these three players on the shortlist. This is the first Ballon d'Or nomination for Neymar, who had a superb year scoring 39 goals and adding 15 assists. Neymar faces tough competition for the award, but a nomination solidifies his status as an elite footballer, according to the Inquisitr.

Ronaldo was the highest scoring player in 2015, scoring 61 times and adding 21 assists, leading some to argue he should win the Ballon d'Or outright. Despite outscoring Messi, Ronaldo told Jonathan Ross, he thinks Messi will win the honor. "To be honest I think Messi is going to win this year because this kind of trophy, it depends on votes," he said.

Messi had an outstanding campaign that saw the Argentine score 58 goals and assist on another 18. Messi lead Barcelona to a UEFA Super Cup title and a first place finish in La Liga. Messi's accomplishments make him the favorite to win the award, according to Guillem Balague.

The lone surprise on the shortlist might come from an omission. Barcelona's Luis Suarez failed to receive a nomination, despite strong play throughout 2015. Messi expressed his disappointment at his teammate's absence from the list, at the annual La Liga awards. "I also would have like to share the event with Luis because he also deserved to be there following his great performance during last season," he said. "But we must also accept the fact that Cristiano is a true deserver of the nomination. So we will go to enjoy the moment like we did every time we went there."

The Ballon d'Or winner will be announced on Jan. 11, 2016 in Zurich Switzerland, at the annual FIFA Ballon d'Or Gala.

@ 2024 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.