There will not be a winner of the Ballon d’Or after France Football decided the award wouldn’t be handed out this year.
It comes as a result of the coronavirus pandemic, which put a halt to major football leagues.
"There will be no edition in 2020, because it turns out, after thoughtful consideration, that all the conditions are not met," Pascal Ferre, editor-in-chief of France Football, said in a statement.
"We believe that such a singular year cannot -and should not- be treated as an ordinary one.
"From a sports perspective, two months (January and February), out of the eleven generally required to form an opinion and decide who should lift the trophies, represent far too little to gauge and judge; without forgetting that the other games were played – or will be played – in unordinary conditions (behind closed doors, with five replacements, Champions League’s Final 8 played in a single game).”
It’s an almighty shame because the competition was shaping up to be extremely tight.
Lionel Messi has enjoyed a fine individual season for Barcelona while Cristiano Ronaldo has returned in blistering fashion, scoring in nine of his last eight matches for Juventus.
Then there’s Robert Lewandowski, who won a domestic double with Bayern Munich and scored 51 goals in all competitions.
Many feel as though the Pole has been robbed of the award but the statistics paint a different story.
We’ve used data from WhoScored to show how the standings should have looked, with the ratings of the top 10 players in Europe this season.
10. Jadon Sancho | Borussia Dortmund | 7.57
9. Alphonso Davies | Bayern Munich | 7.61
8. Josep Illicic | Atalanta | 7.62
7. Angel Di Maria | Paris Saint-Germain | 7.72
6. Dimitri Payet | Marseille | 7.73
5. Cristiano Ronaldo | Juventus | 7.76
4. Kevin De Bruyne | Manchester City | 7.87
3. Kylian Mbappe | Paris Saint-Germain | 8.00
2. Robert Lewandowski | Bayern Munich | 8.30
1. Lionel Messi | Barcelona | 8.68
So, Lewandowski wasn't 'robbed', then.
Messi has a better rating than him, although we must remind everyone that the Champions League would have influenced the outcome of the award.
Bayern Munich are considered one of the favourites to win the tournament and with good reason.
They have talent in every position and arguably the game's best No.9 in Lewandowski.