The decision to hold the 2022 World Cup in the 'weird' month of December has brought about a string of unprecedented discussions ahead of the 2023 Ballon d'Or race.
The global tournament is often a strong indicator of who will win the coveted individual award, with Lionel Messi leading the race for the gong and Erling Haaland diving into the argument.
However, with Messi's early elimination from the UEFA Champions League, the 2023 race will be determined by a couple of things apart from the World Cup and by the time the 2023 vote happens.
The full list of nominees was unveiled on September 6 and there is no doubt the 2023 Ballon d'Or race will be a heated one. Sports Brief looks at some of the most controversial calls in history of the award.
1. Robert Lewandowski - 2020
The theft herein was the fact that the awards were cancelled at a time when Lewandowski was on his way to winning his first title.
His could have been uncontested like the Karim Benzema triumph of last year, as the Polish star was in a class of his own.
According to a report by Goal, organisers cited the coronavirus pandemic as a reason, but every sane football fan knows it was Lewandowski's award for the taking.
2. Franck Ribery - 2013
Ribery was part of the Bayern Munich squad that won the treble under Jupp Heynckes. He was the focal point of the attack that saw off Borussia Dortmund in the Champions League final.
However, he was beaten by Cristiano Ronaldo to the award despite the Portuguese star finishing the season without a single trophy.
The latter was adjudged to have had better individual numbers than Ribery, with the French star not even finishing in second place - boy, was he bitter!
3. Wesley Sneijder - 2010
How the Ballon d'Or winner is determined came under intense scrutiny in 2010. Whether it was one's goals or how one had inspired his side to trophies was discussed widely.
Judging by the outcome, the former won the argument as Lionel Messi was declared the winner. While it is hard to argue against his 60-goal contribution that season, Sneijder had made Jose Mourinho's Inter Milan tick.
Inter won the treble that season and the Dutch legend followed it up with another marquee performance at the World Cup. He was only outperformed by Uruguay's Diego Forlan as the Netherlands reached the final.
Messi's Argentina, meanwhile, bowed out in the quarter-finals and his team was eliminated from the Champions League by Sneijder's mighty Inter side.
Final Ballon d'Or 2023 rankings
Sports Brief has also reported that Messi remains a Ballon d'Or front-runner and is on course to win a record eighth title when the ceremony goes down sometime in October this year.
His World Cup heroics with Argentina have given him a perfect head start, with Erling Haaland closing the gap recently with a spectacular goal-scoring record for Manchester City.
In as much as the Ballon d'Or award is often given on individual merit, the Champions League usually plays a critical role in swaying the vote, although the World Cup takes precedence.
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