In December 2001, Michael Owen became the first English player to win the Ballon d’Or in 22 years, since Kevin Keegan secured the prestigious accolade in consecutive years, in 1978 and 1979.
For Owen, it capped off a remarkable run of success at Liverpool, having won five trophies in the calendar year and all within a few months.
In the 2000/01 season, the Reds secured a unique treble, winning the League Cup, the FA Cup and the UEFA Cup, known today as the Europa League.
That was followed by a Charity Shield win and a UEFA Super Cup success with Owen front and centre in a trophy-laden spell for the Reds.
It culminated for him with the individual European award, but it is not quite the same Ballon d'Or that we know today, having been the subject of a relentless battle between Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo in recent years.
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Ballon d'Or Background
The original Ballon d'Or, from 1956 to 2009, was organised by the renowned France Football magazine and awarded to the European Footballer of the Year.
Only European players representing European clubs were eligible to receive the prize, meaning that superstars like Pele and Diego Maradona were not invited to the proverbial party.
That changed in 1995, when AC Milan’s George Weah, a Liberian and the current President of the African nation, became the first non-European recipient, although he was recognised for his exploits in Italy.
Then in 2010, the Ballon d’Or was merged with the World Player of the Year award to adopt official patronage and became the FIFA Ballon d’Or.
This move created a de facto undisputed trophy for the best player in the world.
Michael Owen's rise
Owen was born in Chester on 14 December 1979. He rapidly progressed through the ranks of Liverpool’s youth academy to make his first-team debut at the tender age of just 17.
He scored on his Premier League debut in May 1997 in a 2-1 defeat for the Reds against Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park. From that moment, he never looked back and would go on to have a stellar career for club and country, including spells at Real Madrid, Newcastle United, Manchester United and Stoke City.
Owen was capped 89 times and scored 40 goals for the Three Lions, putting him in sixth place among England's all-time top scorers behind Harry Kane, Wayne Rooney, Bobby Charlton, Gary Lineker, and Jimmy Greaves.
Amongst his many notable moments for England, Owen scored a beautiful goal against Argentina in the 1998 World Cup, his true breakthrough moment and secured a hat-trick against Germany in Munich, in qualification for the 2002 World Cup.
How Owen secured the Ballon d'Or
In his first full season for Liverpool in the Premier League, the diminutive striker finished as joint-top scorer with 18 goals. He was the Anfield side’s top goal-scorer from 1997 to 2004, despite a recurring hamstring issue which prevented him from hitting even greater heights.
In the 2000/01 season, under Gerard Houllier, Liverpool came third in the Premier League, behind Manchester United and Arsenal, but the other domestic cups went to Anfield.
25 February 2001 – Liverpool win the League (EFL) Cup
The first to be secured was the League Cup. Owen was an unused substitute in a victory on penalties over Birmingham City but scored en route to the final with an extra-time strike against Fulham at the quarter-final stage.
This game was the first domestic cup final to be held outside of England. Wembley Stadium had closed to be rebuilt, so the Millennium Stadium in Cardiff was the stage for Liverpool to win their first trophy in six years.
12 May 2001 – Liverpool win the FA Cup
Owen may have gone unused in the League Cup final, but he more than made his mark in the FA Cup final three months later, with a brace against Arsenal.
Freddie Ljungberg had put the favourites a goal up in the 72nd minute, but Owen hit back in the 83rd. Just five minutes later, with extra time looming, Owen would outpace the ageing Lee Dixon and Tony Adams to complete the Reds' comeback.
16 May 2001 – Liverpool win the UEFA Cup
Owen and Liverpool could not rest on their laurels after FA Cup victory, however, as they faced Spanish side Alaves in the 2001 UEFA Cup Final.
The Reds had already defeated Barcelona in the semi-finals, as well as Porto and Roma earlier in the competition. Owen netted a stunning brace at the Stadio Olimpico to dump the Italians out.
Owen did not score himself in a 5-4 thriller that saw Liverpool win with a golden goal, but did turn provider, assisting Steven Gerrard, and won a penalty too.
12 August 2001 – Liverpool win the Community Shield
The trophies kept on coming at the start of the following season, with a 2-1 Charity Shield win over Manchester United.
Owen made his mark again at the Millennium Stadium, scoring what turned out to be the winner in the 16th minute.
24 August 2001 – Liverpool win the UEFA Super Cup
He repeated the same feat in the 2001 UEFA Super Cup final, winning 3-2 over a star-studded Bayern Munich that had just won the Champions League.
Owen's all-around performance was superb, and he also created John Arne Riise's goal. The striker won the Man of the Match award and added a fresh layer of gloss to Liverpool's unconventional treble the season before.
1 September 2001 – Germany 1, England 5
He saved his best performance of a vintage year for the white of England though.
Owen bagged a hat-trick against overwhelming favourites Germany, as the Three Lions took control of their qualifying group with what arguably remains their greatest individual result of the century so far.
18 December 2001 – Owen wins the Ballon d'Or
The glory run reached its climax in December, when the Liverpool striker was awarded the Ballon d’Or to mark his significant form in the Premier League, in Europe, and for England.
He topped the poll ahead of Raul, Oliver Kahn, David Beckham, Francesco Totti, Luis Figo, Rivaldo, Andriy Shevchenko, Thierry Henry and Zinedine Zidane to emphasise just how highly he was rated and the level that he reached that season.
Could a Liverpool player win the 2025 Ballon d'Or?
Remarkably, Michael Owen is the only Liverpool player to have won the Ballon d'Or. But with the Reds already off to a flyer this season, could one of their stars become their second? Let's take a look at the frontrunners…
Mohamed Salah
Mohamed Salah is currently rated at 20/1 for the 2025 Ballon d'Or, which for a player in his form, are very generous odds.
The 32-year-old has been in some of the finest form of his illustrious career in 2024/25, with age only adding new angles and elements to his game.
Salah has been utterly extraordinary, with 21 goals and 17 assists in all competitions. That would be an incredible season for almost anyone, but Salah has another four months to add to his tallies!
The star attacker is averaging a goal or assist every 63 minutes this season. To put that into perspective, Ronaldo scored or assisted every 78 minutes when he won his final Ballon d'Or back in 2017.
He has turned up in the big moments too, with goals and assists against Manchester United, Arsenal, Chelsea, Manchester City and Bayer Leverkusen.
The former Roma man has always been neglected by the Ballon d'Or. Despite his 231 goals and 104 assists since moving to Liverpool in 2017, Premier League and Champions League titles, the Egyptian king has never been replaced with a place on the podium.
Salah is in the final months of his Liverpool contract, but with the Reds leading the Premier League and Champions League, they will hope to scoop at least one. If they do, Salah is surely a shoo-in for the Ballon d'Or.
Virgil van Dijk
Unlike Salah, Liverpool captain Virgil van Dijk has received some international recognition for his totemic performances, winning the UEFA Men's Player of the Year award in 2018/19, defeating both Messi and Ronaldo.
The Balon d'Or is the next step for the big Dutchman, who has been superb at the back for Liverpool this season.
Van Dijk is widely regarded as one of the best defenders to have ever played in the Premier League. The 33-year-old reads the game superbly, anticipating danger before anyone else.
His anticipation is so good that he rarely ever needs to use his incredible physical gifts. The centre-back is 6ft5in and as quick as any striker.
The Liverpool man contributes on the ball too, with his composure on the ball key to Liverpool's patient build-up, and his perfectly-weighted switches of play key to setting Salah away.
He steps up in big moments too, such as his thumping header to equalise away to title rivals Arsenal. With Messi and Ronaldo out of the picture, the field is much more open. Could van Dijk be the first centre-back since Fabio Cannavaro to win the Ballon d'Or?
Trent Alexander-Arnold
Rounding out our list is Liverpool's unicorn of a right-back, Trent Alexander-Arnold. The Englishman has been superb this campaign, with his defensive improvement particularly notable.
The England international's passing range has been as broad and influential as ever for the Reds too, from progressing the ball up the pitch and creating chances to whipping in set pieces.
Rodri became the first defensive midfielder to ever win the Ballon d'Or in 2024… could Alexander-Arnold become the first right-back?
In a cruel twist for Reds fans, Alexander-Arnold's chances could be boosted by the right-back's rumoured move to Real Madrid…
Los Blancos' players have won a whopping 12 Ballon d'Ors, the most of any team.
