From a 30-man shortlist released on Monday for the 2017 Ballon d’Or, only two Africans have been nominated for a possible chance to win.
The two are Sadio Mane from Senegal who plays his club football with Liverpool and Gabonese star Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang who plays for Borussia Dortmund.
Current holder Cristiano Ronaldo is expectedly topping the list.
Ronaldo, who scored 42 goals in 46 games as Real Madrid won La Liga and the Champions League last season, is hoping to win the prestigious award back-to-back.
If the Portuguese star succeeds, it would be his fifth Ballon d’Or; a feat that would move level Ronaldo with long-time rival Lionel Messi who is also among the latest nominees.
Also the likes of Neymar, N’Golo Kante and Kylian Mbappe who enjoyed varying degrees of successes with their clubs and countries are also shortlisted.
However, opinions divide as to whether this represents the true quality of African players strutting their stuff outside the continent’s shores.
Here is the full list of nominees:
Neymar (PSG/Brazil)
Luka Modric (Real Madrid/Croatia)
Paulo Dybala (Juventus/Argentina)
Marcelo (Real Madrid/Brazil)
N’Golo Kante (Chelsea/France)
Luis Suarez (Barcelona/Uruguay)
Sergio Ramos (Real Madrid/Spain)
Jan Oblak (Atletico Madrid/Slovenia)
Philippe Coutinho (Liverpool/Brazil)
Dries Mertens (Napoli/Belgium)
Kevin De Bruyne (Manchester City/Belgium)
Robert Lewandowski (Bayern Munich/Poland)
David De Gea (Manchester United/Spain)
Harry Kane (Tottenham/England)
Edin Dzeko (Roma/Bosnia)
Antoine Griezmann (Atletico Madrid/France)
Toni Kroos (Real Madrid/Germany)
Sadio Mane (Liverpool/Senegal)
Radamel Falcao (Monaco/Colombia)
Gianluigi Buffon (Juventus/Italy)
Lionel Messi (Barcelona/Argentina)
Mats Hummels (Bayern Munich/Germany)
Edinson Cavani (PSG/Uruguay)
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (Borussia Dortmund/Gabon)
Karim Benzema (Real Madrid/France)
Eden Hazard (Chelsea/Belgium)
Kylian Mbappe (PSG/France)
Cristiano Ronaldo (Real Madrid/Portugal)
Isco (Real Madrid/Spain)
Leonardo Bonucci (Juventus/Italy)
The award, which is void by a select panel of journalists, will be announced at a ceremony in London next month.
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