The 2024 Ballon d’Or ceremony will take place on Monday, October 28 at the Theater du Chatelet in Paris.
The most distinguished annual ceremony in the football calendar has gained further significance with the recent introduction of the Coaches Awards, with this year’s ceremony establishing the honors for the Men’s and Women’s Coach of the Year for the first time.
Some familiar faces line the list of nominees as both club and international coaches make up the list of distinguished coaches to receive the award.
Despite failing to qualify for the Paris Olympics this summer, England coach Sarina Wiegman is nominated in the category.
Emma Hayes she also received a worthy nomination for her 2023/24 campaign with Chelsea, having led the team to the semi-finals of the UEFA Women’s Champions League, before winning a fifth consecutive WSL title with the Blues.
Sonia Bompastor He is also on the mend after leading Lyon to the Champions League final, where they were beaten 2-0 by Barcelona in Bilbao. Bompastor also led Lyon to success in the 2023/24 D1F season, before taking on the role of head coach at Chelsea in the summer.
Jonathan Giraldez He robbed Bompastor of a fairytale ending in Bilbao as his Barcelona side reigned victorious in the Champions League again thanks to goals from Aitana Bonmati and Alexia Putellas. Giraldez’s Barcelona side have also taken the domestic field, having taken silver in Liga F, the Copa de la Reina and the Supercopa de España Femenina.
Coach of the Brazilian national team Arthur Elias has received a nomination after taking over as manager in September 2023. Elias led the team to victory at the 2024 CONCACAF W Gold Cup, before leading the Canarinhas to a silver medal at the Games Paris Olympics
Benfica coach Filipa Patao has received his laurels for an outstanding managerial campaign in Portugal, having led the team to a domestic treble during the 2023/24 season. Benfica won the Campeonato Nacional Feminino, Taca de Portugal and Taca da Liga.
While each of the six nominees deserves their spot on the final list, there can only be one winner at the Ballon d’Or ceremony.
After conquering the WSL once again, Emma Hayes traveled to the United States to become the head coach of the United States Women’s National Team. She made it look easy at the Olympics, claiming gold. However, Ballon d’Or eligibility only counts for the period between August 1, 2023 and July 31, 2024, meaning his Olympic triumph came just two weeks too late to be considered here.
Sonia Bompastor and Filipa Patao dominated their respective domestic leagues, but the biggest plaudits can go to Jonatan Giraldez for her huge success (again) in the UEFA Women’s Champions League.
Predicted 2024 Women’s Coach of the Year Winner: Jonatan Giraldez
