FIFA World Cup awards facts for kids
The FIFA World Cup is the biggest football tournament in the world! After each exciting final tournament, special awards are given to the players and teams who showed amazing skill and sportsmanship. These awards celebrate the best of the best in football. The winning team gets to lift the famous FIFA World Cup Trophy. Players and coaches from the top three teams also receive gold, silver, and bronze medals.
Contents
Golden Ball
What is the Golden Ball Award?
The Golden Ball award goes to the best player in each FIFA World Cup. A special committee from FIFA chooses a shortlist of players. Then, media representatives vote for the winner. Players who come in second and third place receive the Silver Ball and Bronze Ball awards. This award started at the 1982 FIFA World Cup. Oliver Kahn is the only goalkeeper to have won it, back in 2002. At the 2022 FIFA World Cup, Lionel Messi made history by winning his second Golden Ball.
Golden Ball Winners: 1982 to Today
Golden Boot
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What is the Golden Boot Award?
The Golden Boot award is given to the player who scores the most goals in the FIFA World Cup. This award was first officially given in 1982 as the "Golden Shoe." It was renamed "Golden Boot" in 2010. If players score the same number of goals, the winner is decided by who had more assists. If there's still a tie, the player who played fewer minutes wins. There are also Silver and Bronze Boots for the second and third highest goal scorers.
Top Goal Scorers: Golden Boot Winners
Golden Glove
What is the Golden Glove Award?
The Golden Glove award is given to the best goalkeeper of the tournament. It was first introduced in 1994 as the "Lev Yashin Award," named after a famous Soviet goalkeeper. In 2010, it was renamed "Golden Glove." FIFA's Technical Study Group chooses the top goalkeeper based on their performance. Even though goalkeepers have this special award, they can still win the Golden Ball, just like Oliver Kahn did in 2002.
Best Goalkeepers: Golden Glove Winners
| Lev Yashin Award | ||
|---|---|---|
| World Cup | Lev Yashin Award | Clean sheets |
| 1994 United States |  Michel Preud'homme |
2 |
| 1998 France |  Fabien Barthez |
5 |
| 2002 South Korea–Japan |  Oliver Kahn |
5 |
| 2006 Germany |  Gianluigi Buffon |
5 |
| Golden Glove | ||
| World Cup | Golden Glove | Clean sheets |
| 2010 South Africa |  Iker Casillas |
5 |
| 2014 Brazil | Manuel Neuer |
4 |
| 2018 Russia | Thibaut Courtois |
3 |
| 2022 Qatar |  Emiliano Martínez |
3 |
| 2026 Canada–Mexico–United States | 7 | |
FIFA Young Player Award
Recognizing Young Talent: The FIFA Young Player Award
The FIFA Young Player Award celebrates the best young talent in the tournament. It was first given at the 2006 FIFA World Cup to Germany's Lukas Podolski. To be eligible, a player must be 21 years old or younger at the start of the calendar year. For the 2022 World Cup, this meant players born on or after January 1, 2001. FIFA also held an online poll for fans to choose the "Best Young Player" from past World Cups (1958-2002). Pelé won that fan vote for his performance in 1958.
Young Player Award Winners Through the Years
| World Cup | FIFA Young Player | Age | Position |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1958 Sweden |  Pelé |
17 | FW |
| 1962 Chile |  Flórián Albert |
20 | FW |
| 1966 England | Franz Beckenbauer |
20 | DF |
| 1970 Mexico |  Teófilo Cubillas |
21 | MF |
| 1974 West Germany |  Władysław Żmuda |
20 | DF |
| 1978 Argentina |  Antonio Cabrini |
20 | DF |
| 1982 Spain |  Manuel Amoros |
21 | DF |
| 1986 Mexico | Enzo Scifo |
20 | MF |
| 1990 Italy |  Robert Prosinečki |
21 | MF |
| 1994 United States |  Marc Overmars |
20 | FW |
| 1998 France |  Michael Owen |
18 | FW |
| 2002 South Korea–Japan |  Landon Donovan |
20 | FW |
| 2006 Germany | Lukas Podolski |
21 | FW |
| 2010 South Africa | Thomas Müller |
20 | FW |
| 2014 Brazil | Paul Pogba |
21 | MF |
| 2018 Russia | Kylian Mbappé |
19 | FW |
| 2022 Qatar | Enzo Fernández |
21 | MF |
| 2026 Canada–Mexico–United States | Pau Cubarsí |
19 | DF |
FIFA Fair Play Trophy
Celebrating Fair Play: The FIFA Fair Play Trophy
The FIFA Fair Play Trophy is given to the team that shows the best sportsmanship during the World Cup. Only teams that reach the second round can win this award, which started in 1970. Winners receive the trophy, a diploma, medals for each player and official, and $50,000 worth of football equipment for youth development. The trophy has changed its look over the years. Peru was the first team to win it in 1970, by not getting any yellow or red cards.
Teams Honored for Fair Play
Player of the Match
Highlighting Top Performers: Player of the Match
The Player of the Match award recognizes the best player in each game of the tournament. It started in 2002 as the "Man of the Match" award. In 2022, it was renamed "Player of the Match." For the first two World Cups, a technical group chose the winner. Since 2010, fans vote online on FIFA's website to pick the Player of the Match.
Players with the Most Match Awards
| World Cup | Player(s) with most POTM wins | Wins |
|---|---|---|
| 2002 South Korea–Japan |  Rivaldo |
3 |
| 2006 Germany | Andrea Pirlo |
3 |
| 2010 South Africa | Wesley Sneijder |
4 |
| 2014 Brazil | Lionel Messi |
4 |
| 2018 Russia | Antoine Griezmann Eden Hazard Harry Kane Luka Modrić |
3 |
| 2022 Qatar | Lionel Messi |
5 |
Total awards As of 15 July 2026
| Rank | Player | Wins | World Cup(s) with awards |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Lionel Messi |
16 | 2010, 2014, 2018, 2022, 2026 |
| 2 |  Cristiano Ronaldo |
9 | 2010, 2014, 2018, 2022, 2026 |
| 3 | Kylian Mbappé |
8 | 2018, 2022, 2026 |
| 4 | Harry Kane |
6 | 2018, 2022, 2026 |
| Arjen Robben |
2006, 2010, 2014 | ||
| 6 | Luka Modrić |
5 | 2018, 2022 |
 Luis Suárez |
2010, 2014, 2018 | ||
| 8 | Jude Bellingham |
4 | 2026 |
| Antoine Griezmann |
2018, 2022 | ||
| Eden Hazard |
2014, 2018 | ||
 Keisuke Honda |
2010, 2014 | ||
| Miroslav Klose |
2002, 2006 | ||
| Thomas Müller |
2010, 2014 | ||
| Neymar |
2014, 2018, 2022 | ||
 Park Ji-sung |
2002, 2006, 2010 | ||
 James Rodríguez |
2014, 2018 | ||
| Wesley Sneijder |
2010 |
Player of the Match Awards by Country
As of 18 July 2026
| Rank | Country | Wins | Players |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Brazil |
29 | 17 |
| 2 | Argentina |
28 | 11 |
| 3 | France |
27 | 14 |
| 4 | Germany |
25 | 14 |
| 5 | England |
24 | 15 |
| Spain |
17 | ||
| 7 | Netherlands |
19 | 9 |
| 8 |  Mexico |
18 | 14 |
| Portugal |
10 | ||
| 10 | United States |
16 | 10 |
Most Entertaining Team
The Most Entertaining Team Award
The Most Entertaining Team award is given to the team that fans believe played the most exciting football. This award is chosen by a public poll and started in 1994. It celebrates teams that play with a positive and fun style.
Teams Voted Most Entertaining
| World Cup | Most Entertaining Team Award |
|---|---|
| 1994 United States | Brazil |
| 1998 France | France |
| 2002 South Korea–Japan |  South Korea |
| 2006 Germany | Portugal |
All-Star Team
Official All-Star Teams: 1994-2006
The All-Star Team is a group of the best players from each World Cup. From 1994 to 2006, FIFA's Technical Study Group officially selected these teams. They were known as the MasterCard All-Star Team.
| World Cup | Goalkeepers | Defenders | Midfielders | Forwards |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1994 United States |
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| 1998 France |
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| 2002 South Korea–Japan |
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| 2006 Germany |
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Fans' Dream Teams: Voted by Supporters
From 2010 to 2018, fans voted online on the FIFA website to choose their "Fan Dream Team." These teams are not considered official by FIFA, but they show which players were most popular with the public.
| World Cup | Goalkeeper | Defenders | Midfielders | Forwards | Manager |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2002 South Korea–Japan |
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— | |||
| 2010 South Africa |
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| 2014 Brazil | |||||
| 2018 Russia | — |
Goal of the Tournament
The Best Goal: Goal of the Tournament Award
The Goal of the Tournament award celebrates the most spectacular goal scored during the World Cup. Fans vote for their favorite goal. This award was first given at the 2006 FIFA World Cup.
Winning Goals Through the Years
| World Cup | Player | Scored against | Score | Minute | Result | Round | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2006 Germany | Maxi Rodríguez |
Mexico |
2–1 | 98' (aet) |
2–1 (aet) |
Round of 16 | |
| 2010 South Africa | Diego Forlán |
Germany |
2–1 | 51' | 2–3 | Match for third place | |
| 2014 Brazil | James Rodríguez |
Uruguay |
1–0 | 28' | 2–0 | Round of 16 | |
| 2018 Russia | Benjamin Pavard |
Argentina |
2–2 | 57' | 4–3 | Round of 16 | |
| 2022 Qatar | Richarlison |
 Serbia |
2–0 | 73' | 2–0 | Group stage | |
| 2026 Canada–Mexico–United States |  Sidny Lopes Cabral |
Argentina |
2–2 | 103' (aet) |
2–3 (aet) |
Round of 32 |
See also
- FIFA Women's World Cup awards
- UEFA European Championship awards
- Copa América awards
- Africa Cup of Nations awards
- AFC Asian Cup awards
- CONCACAF Gold Cup awards
- OFC Nations Cup awards
