(CNN)Luka Modric has won the 2018 Ballon d’Or, becoming the first player other than Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo to receive the award since 2007.
The midfielder, 33, who helped Croatia reach the men’s World Cup final in Russia in the summer, is the first Croatian to win the prestigious prize, which is voted for by journalists.
On a historic evening in Paris, the ceremony had a women’s category for the first time since its inception in 1956, with Norway’s Ada Hegerberg crowned the inaugural women’s Ballon d’Or winner.
