2020 football awards axed due to coronavirus

By Can Erozden

ANKARA (AA) - One of the most prestigious awards for football player of the year, the Ballon d'Or, will not be given out in 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic.

"There won't be a Ballon d'Or France Football in 2020," awards organizer France Football magazine said in a statement on Monday.

France Football said the award will skip a year due to the uneven conditions as 2020 is an extraordinary year due to the virus.

Starting in 1956, France Football has awarded its Ballon d'Or trophy annually to the world's best male football player.

A separate women’s award, Ballon d'Or Feminin, was added in 2018.

Last December, Barcelona's Argentine superstar Lionel Messi won the Ballon d'Or award for the sixth time.

US midfielder Megan Rapinoe, captain of the US National Soccer Team, won the women’s award.

The Ballon d'Or was organized by FIFA and France Football until 2015. After they split, FIFA has handed out its own awards since 2016.