Manchester City midfielder and Cote D’Ivoire national team captain Yaya Toure has been included in a list of nominees for the FIFA Ballon d’Or 2015, which is the award given to the best player in the world during the course of the year.

The 23-man list was selected by members of the FIFA Football Committee and a group of experts from France Football magazine.

Toure has never won the prize, despite being named Africa’s best player four times, as the dominance of Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi on the world stage has seen them scoop the prize in recent years.

The Cote D’Ivoire captain won the 2015 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) title at the beginning of this year, leading his team to the final where they defeated Ghana in a tense penalty shootout victory.

His contribution to that success, as well as his efforts for Manchester City in the English Premier League and European club football have been recognised by his inclusion amongst the best players of the year, and he has the distinction of being the only African appearing on the list.

The voting for the FIFA Ballon d’Or award commences on 26 October 2015 and closes on 20 November 2015, with the final decision falling to the captains and coaches of national football teams around the world, as well as a select panel of international media representatives.

On November 30 the top three nominees will be announced, from which a winner will be selected on January 11, 2016.

 

The nominees are as follows:

Sergio Agüero (Argentina/Manchester City)

Gareth Bale (Wales/Real Madrid)

Karim Benzema (France/Real Madrid)

Cristiano Ronaldo (Portugal/Real Madrid)

Kevin De Bruyne (Belgium/VfL Wolfsburg/Manchester City)

Eden Hazard (Belgium/Chelsea)

Zlatan Ibrahimović (Sweden/Paris Saint-Germain)

Andrés Iniesta (Spain/FC Barcelona)

Toni Kroos (Germany/Real Madrid)

Robert Lewandowski (Poland/FC Bayern Munich)

Javier Mascherano (Argentina/FC Barcelona)

Lionel Messi (Argentina/FC Barcelona)

Thomas Müller (Germany/FC Bayern Munich)

Manuel Neuer (Germany/FC Bayern Munich)

Neymar (Brazil/FC Barcelona)

Paul Pogba (France/Juventus)

Ivan Rakitić (Croatia/FC Barcelona)

Arjen Robben (Netherlands/FC Bayern Munich)

James Rodríguez (Colombia/Real Madrid)

Alexis Sánchez (Chile/Arsenal)

Luis Suárez (Uruguay/FC Barcelona)

Yaya Toure (Côte d’Ivoire/Manchester City)

Arturo Vidal (Chile/Juventus/FC Bayern Munich)