Barcelona star Ronaldinho has been confirmed as European Footballer of the Year.
Barcelona star Ronaldinho has been confirmed as European Footballer of the Year for 2005 beating Frank Lampard and Steven Gerrard.Ronaldinho was the clear winner of the Ballon D'Or from the strong shortlist that was announced for the award by France Football magazine.
Chelsea star Lampard came second in the voting after helping the Blues to The Premiership title last season and Liverpool skipper Gerrard was third after his success with Liverpool in the UEFA Champions League.
The award is more recognition for Ronaldinho as he is already the Fifa 2004 World Player of the Year and also scooped the FIFpro World Player of the Year award earlier this year.
Ronaldinho has been rewarded for producing some memorable displays for club and country in the last 12 months and is rated by many as the best player on the planet.
The brilliant playmaker enjoyed a fine season with club and country last term, guiding Barcelona to the Liga title and also helping Brazil qualify for next summer's World Cup finals.
The Brazilian has helped transform the fortunes of Barca since arriving from Paris Saint Germain in the summer of 2003 and he is tipped to retain his World Player of the Year award.
Ronaldinho was delighted to pick up the award in Paris which was the 50th time the prize was presented.
"To be here with all those great players applauding me is a dream come true," said Ronaldinho after receiving the golden ball trophy at a ceremony in Paris attended by several former winners."This gives me motivation to keep working and try to emulate them.
"I have the chance to do for a living what I like the most in life, and that's playing football. I can make people happy and enjoy myself at the same time."
Arsenal star Thierry Henry again missed out on the top prize coming in fourth, while Chelsea captain John Terry was joint-tenth with Barcelona striker Samuel Eto'o.
Top Ten:
1. Ronaldinho (Barcelona) 225 points
2. Frank Lampard (Chelsea) 148
3. Steven Gerrard (Liverpool) 142
4. Thierry Henry (Arsenal) 41
5. Andrei Shevchenko (Milan) 33
6. Paolo Maldini (Milan) 23
7. Adriano (Internazionale) 22
8. Zlatan Ibrahimovic (Juventus) 21
9. Kaka (Milan) 19
10. Samuel Eto'o (Barcelona) & John Terry (Chelsea) 18
