Sam Kerr finishes second in Women's Ballon d'Or

Report by Julia Woods and Football West 1698717861,1698719141

Sam Kerr picked up second place at the 2023 Ballon d'Or awards, her best finish for the prestigious award.

The Perth-born Chelsea and CommBank Matildas striker had previously recorded finishes of third (2021 & 2022), fifth (2018) and seventh (2019) in the Ballon d'Or Féminin, which recognises the world's best female footballer.

Sam Kerr of Australia is brought in for Hayley Raso during the FIFA Women's World Cup Australia & New Zealand 2023 Round of 16 match between Australia and Denmark at Stadium Australia on August 07, 2023 in Sydney / Gadigal, Australia . (Photo by Brendon Thorne/Getty Images)
Sam Kerr of Australia is brought on for Hayley Raso during the FIFA Women's World Cup Australia & New Zealand 2023 Round of 16 match between Australia and Denmark at Stadium Australia on August 7, 2023 in Sydney / Gadigal, Australia. (Photo by Brendon Thorne/Getty Images)
 

Kerr, who helped Australia to a fourth-place finish at this year's FIFA Women's World Cup, has continued her incredible form over the past week while playing in the CommBank Matildas' Olympic Qualifiers in Perth. She came off the bench to score in last week's 2-0 win over Iran, then bagged a hat-trick in Sunday's 8-0 thrashing of the Philippines.

Aitana Bonmati claimed the Women's Ballon d'Or for the first time after helping Spain win the FIFA Women's World Cup and Barcelona the Champions League and Spanish title. Her Spain and Barcelona teammate Salma Paralluelo came third.

Kerr's Australia teammate Hayley Raso received her first nomination for the award following a memorable FIFA Women's World Cup campaign for the winger, placing 17th.

Lionel Messi won his eighth Men's Ballon d'Or after leading Argentina to their third FIFA World Cup triumph.

The 2023 Ballon d'Or Féminin top 30:

1.Aitana Bonmatí (Spain), 2. Sam Kerr (Australia), Salma Paralluelo (Spain), 4. Fridolina Rolfö (Sweden), 5. Mary Earps (England), 6. Olga Carmona (Spain), 7. Alexandra Popp (Germany), 8. Patricia Guijarro (Spain), 9. Linda Caicedo (Colombia), 10. Rachel Daly (England), 11. Millie Bright (England), 12. Hinata Miyazawa (Japan), 13. Lena Oberdorf (Germany), 14. Kadidiatou Diani (France), 15. Amanda Ilestedt (Sweden), 16. Mapi León (Spain), 17. Hayley Raso (Australia), 18. Ewa Pajor (Poland), 19. Guro Reiten (Norway), Asisat Oshoala (Nigeria), 21. Alba Redondo (Spain), 22. Katie McCabe (Republic of Ireland), 23. Georgia Stanway (England), 24. Khadija Shaw (Jamaica), 25. Sophia Smith (USA), 26. Wendie Renard (France), 27. Yui Hasegawa (Japan), 28. Debinha (Brazil) 29. Jill Roord (Netherlands) & Daphe van Domselarr (Netherlands)