The nomination of Bafana Bafana captain Ronwen Williams for the FIFA Best awards has been unveiled, with Manchester City’s Rodri being his preferred choice during the ceremony held in Doha on Tuesday.

The South African goalkeeper is enjoying a successful run after winning both the CAF Inter-Club Player of the Year and CAF Goalkeeper of the Year awards, placing Rodri from Manchester City at the top of his list.

Williams’ second choice was Real Madrid’s Vinicius Junior, who ultimately secured the award, while his third pick was Dani Carvajal, another player from Real Madrid.

In a related note, Bafana Bafana coach Hugo Broos also favored Rodri as his top selection, followed by Vinicius Junior and Barcelona’s Lamine Yamal.

Interestingly, renowned South African sports presenter Robert Marawa selected Vinicius Junior as his top choice, with Erling Haaland and Toni Kroos trailing behind.

Ultimately, Vinicius Junior triumphed with a total of 48 points, followed closely by Rodri with 43 points and Jude Bellingham with 37 points.

Understanding the selection process for The Best FIFA Men’s Player award

A total of eleven players were nominated for The Best FIFA Men’s Player award, chosen by a panel of experts based on their performances from 21 August 2023 to 10 August 2024.

Voting came from national team coaches, captains, football journalists, and fans, who participated on FIFA’s official website, ranking their first, second, and third preferences.

Points were allocated to nominees based on their rankings (five points for first, three for second, and one for third).

Captains of national teams were prohibited from voting for themselves.

Each voting category—coaches, captains, journalists, and fans—contributed equally, each comprising 25 percent of the overall vote, regardless of the number of voters in each segment.

The award was granted to the player with the highest total points.

In situations where finalists had equal points, the award was given to the player who received the most first-place votes from their voter group (in this case, national team captains).

The voting procedure for The Best FIFA Men’s Player Award was supervised by independent observers.

A comprehensive overview of the voting from across the globe for the FIFA Best Player Award can be found here: