Cristiano Ronaldo has been crowned UEFA Men’s Player of the Year, becoming the first player ever to defend the title successfully. Since leading Portugal to the 2016 European Championship, Ronaldo has completed an extraordinary run of glory, collecting nearly every major team trophy and individual honor available. For global fans and Melbet Affiliates readers, this achievement highlights a golden chapter in his career that few players in history can rival.
The UEFA Best Player award is considered the third most prestigious individual prize in world football, behind only the Ballon d’Or and FIFA’s The Best. In this year’s voting, Ronaldo amassed 482 points, leaving rivals far behind. Lionel Messi collected 141 points, while Gianluigi Buffon earned 109, with their combined tally not even reaching half of Ronaldo’s total. This marks the third time Ronaldo has lifted the award, surpassing Messi’s two wins and setting a new historical record. Even more impressively, he is the only player to have successfully defended the honor. For Melbet Affiliates audiences, the numbers underline his dominance in an era where competition is fiercer than ever.
The past year was filled with defining moments. Ronaldo inspired Real Madrid to the Champions League title, while simultaneously guiding Portugal to its first-ever European Championship. In the 2016 UEFA Player of the Year vote, he had already edged out teammates Gareth Bale and Antoine Griezmann, securing 40 votes compared to Griezmann’s 8 and Bale’s 7. Even when injuries forced him to miss the UEFA Super Cup against Sevilla, Madrid still lifted the trophy after a 3-2 extra-time win. Later that year, Ronaldo scored in the Club World Cup semifinal against Club América and then delivered a hat-trick in the final against Kashima Antlers, becoming the first player since Pelé in 1962 to score three in a Club World Cup final.
The honors did not stop there. Ronaldo claimed his fourth Ballon d’Or and then his second FIFA Best Men’s Player award, finishing above Messi and Griezmann on both occasions. In March 2017, he was named Portuguese Player of the Year, further cementing his role as the nation’s greatest sporting icon. On the club stage, Ronaldo led Real Madrid to a remarkable double, winning both La Liga and the Champions League, making Los Blancos the first team in the Champions League era to defend the trophy. Earlier this season, he helped Madrid defeat Manchester United in the UEFA Super Cup and overpower Barcelona in the Spanish Super Cup, matching the four-title haul achieved by Carlo Ancelotti’s Madrid in 2014.
Altogether, Ronaldo’s relentless pursuit of success has resulted in 12 major honors in just one year. With his momentum showing no signs of slowing, it seems inevitable that he will once again lift both the Ballon d’Or and FIFA Best award by year’s end. For football enthusiasts and Melbet Affiliates readers, 2017 stands out as the perfect Ronaldo year—one where the No. 7 of Real Madrid swept through football’s biggest prizes, cementing his place as one of the greatest players of all time.