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This is the 12th version of the Guardian’s top 100 male footballers. Much has changed since our initial list in 2012, including our online format, but the process remains unchanged. We ask former players and journalists to join our voting panel and share their opinions on the top players in the world for 2023.
In 2012, there were 11 judges chosen to make the list. This year, 218 judges, including well-known football figures like Philipp Lahm, Karen Carney, and Walter Casagrande, are participating. Some former players, such as Aldair, Thomas Hitzlsperger, and Gilles De Bilde, are also joining a diverse group of coaches, broadcasters, reporters, correspondents, and editors from different parts of the world to create a highly knowledgeable and globally representative jury. Together, the 19 current and former professionals have a total of 1,041 international caps.
The countdown for this year’s list will start at 9am GMT on Tuesday, December 19th, beginning with numbers 100 to 71. On Wednesday, we will unveil numbers 70 to 41, followed by numbers 40 to 11 on Thursday. The top 10 will be announced on Friday, concluding the list.
The list of judges is followed by an explanation of the top 100 rules. The judges are organized alphabetically according to their respective categories.
Explanation of the voting process
The top choice of each judge received 40 points, the second choice received 39 points, and so on until 1 point was given to the 40th choice. The total votes were tallied to determine a raw score. To reduce the impact of extreme values in the list, the highest score given to a player was subtracted, resulting in a final score.
To make it onto the list, a player must have received votes from five or more judges. In the event of a tie in scoring, the number of individual votes will determine the winner. The breakdown of individual votes will be made public once the full list is announced.
Voting disclosure
We express our sincerest gratitude to our judges for their participation, and no compensation has been provided for their involvement in this project.
In order to ensure that our judges can freely share their opinions without any bias, individual voting records will be anonymized in the detailed breakdown of scores.
Each voter is assigned a category and a randomly chosen number for identification. The numbers assigned to judges do not correspond with the order of their names as listed alphabetically above.
Players
Aldair Former Brazil international with 80 caps and a World Cup winner in 1994
Björn Andersson Former Sweden international with 25 caps who played at the 1974 World Cup
Kari Arnason, a former football player for Iceland, has 90 appearances for the national team and participated in the 2016 Euros and the 2018 World Cup. He currently serves as the football director for Víkingur, the double champions of 2023.
Rune Bratseth Former Norway international with 60 caps who captained his country at the 1994 World Cup
Karen Carney, a former English national player, has 144 appearances and participated in four World Cups.
Walter Casagrande, a former Brazilian soccer player, represented his country in 19 matches and participated in the 1986 World Cup.
Gilles De Bilde, a former Belgian soccer player who represented the national team 25 times.
Erik Edman, a retired Swedish soccer player, represented his country in 57 matches and participated in the 2006 FIFA World Cup.
Jan Åge Fjørtoft is a retired Norwegian football player who represented his country in 71 matches and competed in the 1994 FIFA World Cup.
Hernanes, a former Brazilian player with 29 appearances for the national team, participated in the 2014 FIFA World Cup.
Former German national Thomas Hitzlsperger, who participated in the 2006 World Cup and holds 52 international caps.
Former German footballer Philipp Lahm was a captain for his national team, earning 113 caps and leading them to victory in the 2014 World Cup.
Lucas Leiva, a former Brazilian national with 24 appearances, was a member of Liverpool FC for a decade from 2007 to 2017.
Lucio is a retired Brazilian soccer player who represented his country in 105 matches and was part of the winning team at the 2002 World Cup.
Janusz Michallik is a former American soccer player who represented the US national team 44 times. He currently works as a football analyst for ESPN.
Ramires, a retired Brazilian soccer player, represented his country in 52 international matches and participated in both the 2010 and 2014 FIFA World Cups.
Aymen Tahar is an Algerian football player who has played for various teams, including Boavista.
Frédéric Waseige, a former midfielder, achieved victories in the Belgian Cup and League Cup while playing for FC Liège. He currently works as a TV commentator.
are important
The presence of coaches and technical staff is crucial.
Fatih Terim Former Milan, Galatasaray and Turkey coach
Magnus Mar Einarsson is the head coach of Afturelding in Iceland.
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Journalists
Ed Aarons Deputy news editor, the Guardian
Amir Abdelhalim is a journalist and television presenter.
Mohamed Abubakar is a multimedia sports journalist serving as the Africa sports correspondent for China Global Television Network.
Ahmed Adala is a journalist for Radio Mosaïque FM in Tunisia.
Nuhu Adams is an expert in African football and a writer for ghanasoccernet.com.
Omar Al Raisi is the creator of Dantani, Inc. and the chief editor of the Sports Journal in the United Arab Emirates.
Davit Alaverdyan is the head editor of Mediamax Media Company in Armenia.
Abdulmohsen Algabbani is a football editor who is located in Saudi Arabia.
Gary Al-Smith is an expert in African sports and writes for various publications such as the Guardian and the BBC. He is also a co-author of LeGyanDary, which is the authorized autobiography of Asamoah Gyan.
Tobias Altschäffl is the Chief Football Reporter for the German publication Sport-Bild.
The Guardian’s European sport correspondent is Nick Ames.
Juan Arango is a football commentator for AFA Play and a correspondent for Al Jazeera.
Thiago Arantes Movistar+ commentator and UOL columnist
Marcela Mora y Araujo Argentinian football writer
Emanuele Atturo is the main editor for ultimouomo.com and also contributes to the Fenomeno podcast.
Philippe Auclair is a contributor for both Josimar and the Guardian, and serves as the England correspondent for Eurosport, France Football, and RTS. He is also known for his biographies on Juan Mata, Thierry Henry, and Eric Cantona.
Momodou Bah is a writer for both BBC Sport and CAF Online.
Nicky Bandini Italian football correspondent, the Guardian
Jorge Baravalle is a journalist for ESPN and specializes in analyzing European football.
John Bennett is a broadcaster for both the BBC World Service and BBC 5 Live.
Patrick Berger is a Sky Sports correspondent based in Germany. He reports on international football events, as well as the Bundesliga and the German national team.
Luca Bianchin Football writer, La Gazzetta dello Sport
I am a football journalist named Christoph Biermann who writes for 11Freunde magazine in Germany.
Eduardo Biscayart is a commentator for European football at Fox Sports Mexico and Telemundo in the USA.
Manuel Bonke Chief reporter at TZ München and Münchner Merkur
Andy Brassell European football writer/broadcaster
Costas Bratsos is a writer who covers football for Sport24.gr in Greece.
Feargal Brennan Staff writer, Football Espana
John Brewin is a football writer for the Guardian.
Rodrigo Bueno, a commentator for ESPN Brasil and a contributor to World Soccer Digest.
Felipe Cárdenas Football writer at the Athletic, covering MLS as well as football in Mexico and Conmebol
Massimo Callegari is a commentator for live Champions League matches and also hosts the Sunday night TV program Pressing on Mediaset in Italy.
Lassana Camara is a sports journalist who works for both Mauritania Football and PAF France. He also contributes to Sport News Africa and Africa 24.
Susy Campanale Staff writer, Football Italia
Pedro Canelo Journalist at El Comercio in Peru
Lédio Carmona is a sports journalist and commentator for SporTV from Brazil.
Antonio Casale is a veteran sports journalist with over 25 years of experience. He currently holds the position of sports director at RCN Radio and is also affiliated with ESPN and El Espectador newspaper.
Carolina Castellanos is a sports journalist for RCN Radio and La Titular. She reports on and provides commentary for various sports.
Hernán Castillo is the sports editor at Continental Radio and has produced the movies Muchachos and Cierren los ojos.
Ivaylo Chilev is a journalist who covers football and also works as a producer for the Champions League broadcast at bTV Media Group in Bulgaria.
Rodolfo Chisleanschi is a sports journalist for La Nación in Argentina.
Special projects editor for football at the Guardian, Marcus Christenson.
Solace Chukwu Senior editor at Pulse Sports Nigeria
Santiago Cordera is in charge of managing strategy and projects at Tikitaka.
Alfredo Coronis is a journalist for Hot 94.1 FM and Conexión Goleadora.
Adriano Del Monte is a prominent television host, known for his work on international networks such as beIN Sports, BT Sport, Fifa, and Uefa.
Haresh Deol is the co-founder and editor of TwentyTwo13, located in Malaysia.
Gianluca Di Marzio is a transfer specialist and global correspondent for Sky Sports Italy.
John Duerden is the Guardian’s correspondent for Asian football.
Wolfram Eilenberger German writer, philosopher (Time of the Magicians, The Visionaries) and licensed football coach
Amine El Amri Sports journalist at Le Matin in Morocco
Adam Elder is a freelance writer and editor for a US magazine.
Kasper Elissaar Editor-in-chief at Soccernet in Estonia
Jeroen Elshoff Football commentator, NOS Dutch National television
Rodrigo Errasti Founder of Imagosport Comunication and former sports editor of the Agencia Colpisa-Vocento in Spain
I am a journalist named Amr Fahmy who is employed at beIN Sports in Egypt.
Christian Falk Head of football at Sport-Bild in Germany
Alinne Fanelli Reporter for Bandnews in Brazil
Giorgio Farina is a sports journalist and researcher who writes for RAI television’s football shows.
Ryan Fenix is a television commentator from the Philippines.
Maria Fernanda Mora is a sports journalist for Televisa-Univision. She hosts Contacto Deportivo in Mexico and USA, and also serves as a women’s football analyst.
Martín Fernandez is a senior football writer at Globoesporte, based in Brazil.
Ezequiel Fernández Moores is a columnist for La Nación and has provided coverage for nine World Cups.
Barak Fever, the ESPN football commentator.
Ben Fisher Football reporter at the Guardian
Oliver Fritsch Sports editor of Zeit Online
Alex Frosio Football editor at La Gazzetta dello Sport
Jonas Giaever is a journalist from Norway who specializes in football. He is also one of the creators of the football app, fcQuiz.
Barry Glendenning is a writer who specializes in football and is a frequent contributor to Guardian Football Weekly.
Fabián Godoy is a commentator and tactical analyst for Directv Sports, TNT Sports, and CNN Radio. He also serves as the Argentina correspondent for Cadena Cope in Spain.
Andreas Hagenauer is a football journalist for Der Standard.
Arafat Hamrouni is a sports reporter for Foot24 and Sports24 in Tunisia.
Daniel Harris, a writer for the Guardian focusing on sports, as well as a film-maker.
Kevin Hatchard is a commentator for the Bundesliga world feed, Uefa, and TalkSport.
Kerry Hau is the main sports journalist for Sport1, specializing in coverage of Bayern Munich and the German national football team.
Johannes Hofer is a presenter for Sky Sport Austria.
Gustavo Hofman is a football journalist and commentator for ESPN in Brazil.
Semra Hunter Football broadcast journalist/TV presenter
Azmaal Hydoo Head of football at Mauritius’s bestselling paper and magazine, L’Express
David Hytner, the main football reporter for the Guardian.
Seo Hyung-wook MBC TV commentator, Footballist CEO, South Korea
Iacopo Iandiorio Deputy editor in chief of international football at La Gazzetta dello Sport
Sasa Ibrulj Bosnian football writer
Kristian Jack is the Vice President of the Canadian Premier League and also works as a TV/radio host, reporter, and writer.
Behnam Jafarzadeh Deputy editor at Varzesh3.com, Iran
Boris Jovanovic, the chief editor of Sportske.net,
Raphaël Jucobin French football and rugby writer
Celestine Karoney Kenyan sports journalist
Jamie Kemble is a football journalist based in Valencia who writes for National World publications. In addition, they also work on translations and content creation for the Spanish football club Eibar.
Ali Khaled is the sports editor of Arab News.
Tom Kludt, an American sports writer, is located in the United States.
Ermal Kuka Sports journalist at Panorama Sport in Albania
and author
I am a freelance journalist and author specializing in football.
Cecilia Lagos is a journalist for ESPN who is stationed in the Netherlands.
Steven Lavon is the writer and communication manager for the Togo Football Association.
Sergio Levinsky is a journalist who works for Infobae and Jornada in Argentina, as well as Kicker in Germany.
Gianluca Lia Sports journalist at Times of Malta
Fabio Licari Head of international department at Gazzetta delo Sport
Jonathan Liew is a sports writer for the Guardian newspaper.
Mansour Loum is the editor-in-chief of Sport News Africa.
Sid Lowe Spanish football correspondent for the Guardian
Alexandre Lozetti Commentator and writer for Globo
Olof Lundh is a Swedish sports journalist who writes for Fotbollskanalen and Dagens Industri. He is also a commentator for TV4 and an author.
Football writer and advisor, Ben Lyttleton.
Ben Mabley is a television commentator based in Japan.
Mpho Maboi is a sports broadcaster who appears on both radio and television.
Jaime F. Macias Football analyst for MLS Apple TV and Telemundo/NBC Universal
As a journalist, Robin-Duke Madlala writes for both IDiski Times and BBC as a freelancer.
Luca Marchetti is the head editor at Sky Sport Italia and also oversees the transfer market team.
Nebojsa Markovic is a sports journalist for RT Balkan.
Gergely Marosi is a freelance sports journalist and football writer from Hungary. He contributes to Sport24.
Everaldo Marques is a Brazilian sports commentator for football.
Pierre Maturana is the director of the French publication SoFoot.com and the lifestyle media Dégaine by So Foot.
Martin Mazur is a football correspondent from Argentina who writes for La Gazzetta dello Sport, FourFourTwo, and 11Freunde. He is also the director of AIPS Sport Media Awards.
Chisom Mbonu-Ezeoke Sports TV presenter and producer with Supersport. Host of the Naijamade show and co-host of the Superpicks show
Ugur Meleke, a columnist for the Hurriyet newspaper and a pundit for beinSports.
Marcus Mergulhao Sports editor, the Times of India
Maher Mezahi is a journalist who primarily focuses on reporting on sports in North Africa.
I am a football writer and journalist for the Athletic, named Colin Millar.
I am Filip Mishov, a freelance sports journalist and football writer from Macedonia.
I am a journalist named Matteo Moretto who works for Relevo.
Tomasz Mortimer is a writer who specializes in Hungarian football.
Dmitriy Mostovoy is a commentator for Setanta Sports in Kazakhstan.
Rasim Movsumzadeh has contributed to Kicker and the European Football Yearbook, and has served as Azerbaijan’s representative for the Ballon d’Or since 2000.
Hassanin Mubarak Football writer and author of Far from War and Politics: the story of Iraq’s 2007 Asian Cup victory
Ricardo Murguía is the commentator for the Champions League on TNT Sports México.
Ewan Murray, a football correspondent from Scotland who writes for the Guardian.
Hirofumi Nakano is a journalist and radio show host based in Japan.
Sachin Nakrani is a football writer for the Guardian.
Mauricio Noriega Brazilian journalist and SporTV commentator
Osasu Obayiuwana British-Nigerian journalist who has been reporting on international football and its politics for over 30 years
Hernan O’Donnell is a journalist for Universo Deportivo, with previous writing experience for El Gráfico and La Nación.
Antonis Oikonomidis Greek freelance football writer
Oluwashina Okeleji is a journalist who works for BBC Sport, World Soccer, and Al Jazeera online.
I am a football journalist and commentator for Amazon Prime Video in Brazil.
Collins Okinyo is a journalist specializing in African football and is also the managing editor of soka25east.com.
Founder of Kawowo Sports, Joseph Owino
Alex Pareja is a sports journalist for ESPN.
Juan Carlos Pasman is an Argentinian journalist who hosts his own shows on DirecTV Sports and Radio La Red.
Artur Petrosyan is a football journalist residing in Paris.
Kieran Quaile is the editor for Get Spanish Football News.
Thiago Rabelo Brazilian journalist and Guardian contributor
Derek Rae is a commentator for ESPN, covering the Bundesliga, La Liga, and the video game Fifa 22.
Marion Reimers is a journalist and broadcaster/commentator for TNT Sports. She is also the founder and president of Versus.
Roberto Rivera is a sports commentator and producer who owns his own company, Gol Dreams Films. He is also the host of a show on WAO radio and Gol Magazine on TV in Panama.
Tom Robinson is a senior content producer at Hudl, as well as a writer, podcaster, and scout for South American football.
Vitor Sergio Rodrigues is a commentator for TNT Sports Brazil.
José Armando Rodríguez Editor-in-chief, Deporte Total USA
Roberto Rojas is an associate editor for ESPN FC.
Fabrizio Romano is a journalist for Sky Sport Italy and also contributes to The Guardian.
Emanuel Rosu is a writer from Romania who specializes in football.
Reporter Stephan Roth from the Swiss newspaper Blick.
Guillermo Rubio “Gumi” Freelance sports journalist working for, among others, Fox Sports Argentina and Onda Cero in Spain
Jeff Rueter Football writer for the Athletic
Max Rushden is the host of Guardian Football Weekly.
Graham Ruthven Football journalist based in Scotland
Mina Rzouki is a writer, presenter, and football expert who appears on various media platforms such as BBC 5live, BBC Sportsworld, Sky Sports, CNN, ESPN, and TRT World.
Manager of KingFut.com, Marwan Saeed
Emre Sarigul Editor and founder of turkish-football.com
Josué Seixas is a Brazilian football journalist who writes for the Guardian, Daily Mail, and Folha de S. Paulo.
Metodi Shumanov Bulgarian football writer
Vidir Sigurdsson is the sports editor for Morgunbladid and mbl.is, as well as the author of the Icelandic Football Yearbook.
Nacho Silván Co-founder of Imagosport and professional football analyst
Miguel Simón is an international football expert for ESPN Latin America.
Matt Spiro is a writer and broadcaster who specializes in French football.
Manos Staramopoulos is the main editor of Discoveryfootball.com, Demokratia, and Foxssportstories. He also contributes to SportPress24.com and Overfm 104.9.
Mojmir Stasko Football writer for Dennik Sport in Slovakia
Jacob Steinberg is a writer covering football for the Guardian.
Nikos Stratis is a sports writer, international football analyst, TV presenter, and radio producer for Kingsport.gr.
Keeshaanan Sundaresan Host/writer at Astro SuperSport, Malaysia
Saku-Pekka Sundelin Football journalist at Ilta-Sanomat
Aet Süvari Estonian football reporter
Agris Suveizda Reporter for Sportacentrs.com in Latvia
Jonathan Tannenwald is a football journalist for the Philadelphia Inquirer.
Paolo Tomaselli has been a football journalist for Corriere Della Sera since 2002. He is located in Milan and covers the Champions League, as well as the Italian national team and Inter.
Mihovil Topic Chief football writer at Telesport in Croatia
Nuno Travassos Executive editor at A Bola
Riccardo Trevisani Sportmediaset commentator
Tran Duc Truong Sports journalist, ZingNews, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
station
Dawit Tsehaye is an editor at Soccer Ethiopia and also serves as a commentator on a radio station in Ethiopia.
Darren Tulett is a presenter for beIN Sports in France.
Unwin, a writer for The Guardian focusing on football.
Petter Veland is a Norwegian television commentator and an expert on La Liga for Viasat.
Manuel Veth North America area manager at Transfermarkt and founder of the Gegenpressing Podcast and Newsletter
Ari Virtanen Sports journalist at Helsingin Sanomat in Finland
Raúl Vilchis Mexican sports journalist based in New York
Bart Vlietstra is a Dutch football journalist who writes for de Volkskrant and Santos magazine.
Lukas Vrablik Slovakian football expert
“I am a freelance journalist and producer specializing in football.”
Alejandro Wall is a writer from Argentina who covers football for Tiempo Argentino, Radio Con Vos, and Fox Sports.
Dan Wighton reports on the Bundesliga and other sports in Germany for AFP.
Greg Wilcox Freelance sports journalist and football writer
I am a football journalist reporting on Bayern Munich for Welt and Welt am Sonntag.
Carl Worswick Football writer based in Colombia
Michael Yokhin European football writer
Bi Yuan Chinese football journalist at Titan Sports, Beijing
Victor Zaferson Mendoza Football scout and analyst based in Peru
Miran Zore is the editor-in-chief of Nogomania in Slovenia.
Source: theguardian.com
