It’s finally here! Monday, October 28. Still need a hint? Well, keep aside your spooky holiday season spirit as we have the much-anticipated 2024 Ballon d’Or today. Excitement for one of soccer’s most prestigious awards is palpable, with ardent fans worldwide crossing their fingers to see their favorite stars lift this esteemed accolade. While it’s certainly something no one wants to miss, questions remain about the whereabouts, including the timings and broadcast details of the Ballon d’Or ceremony.

Organized by France Football at the grandest of all, the iconic Thétre de Chtelet, Paris, France, hundreds will gather to commemorate the best men’s and women’s players that have already been decided by voting from some of the top journalists across FIFA’s 100 top-ranked members. The whole show will be hosted by Chelsea and UEFA icon Didier Drogba and renowned journalist Sandy Heribert.

Now let’s talk about the timings and how to watch the ceremony.

When and how to watch Ballon d’Or 2024?

The 68th edition of the Ballon d’Or will begin at 20:45 local time. Meanwhile, for the rest of the world, the timings of the event are as follows; 19:00 GMT, 20:00 CEST, and 15:45 ET. Regarding the watch and live streaming details, L’Equipe has been generous enough to broadcast the whole event live on its official YouTube channel. It will be available for free but there may be restrictions according to various geographical locations.

If you still face issues while catching up on the ceremony on YouTube, United States fans can tune into Paramount+ and CBS Sports Golazo Network. Meanwhile, fans in the United States can tune in to TNT Sports and their streaming platform Discovery+ and its very own dedicated app. These platforms will sort out the night for you to watch the beautiful game’s iconic award ceremony. Now that we are pretty much aware of all the details might as well make a quick recap of the awards and it’s favorites.

A quick rundown of Ballon d’Or

Speaking of the Ballon d’Or award first, a 30-player list was released by France Football, who have received votes respectively to choose the winner. Some of the key names that have been backed for this award are Real Madrid and Brazil forward Vinicius Jr, Manchester City and Spain midfielder Rodri, and England midfielder Jude Bellingham. Others on the list include Erling Haaland, Kylian Mbappe, Lamine Yamal, Harry Kane, and even a retired Toni Kroos.

On the female side, again 30 players will be contesting to win the prestigious award. FC Barcelona and Spain star Aitana Bonmati is backed to win her second consecutive award with USWNT forward Mallory Swanson and Jamaica striker Khadija Shaw is also in the mix of the favorites. Meanwhile, the rest of the awards include the Kopa Trophy, which is given to the best young player. Running for this award are many budding talented names but Lamine Yamal is the man to claim it.

Next up is the Yashin Trophy, given to the best goalkeeper of the year. Emiliano Martinez is most likely to take this trophy home for the second time in history, even though others like Unai Simon and Giorgi Mamardashvili are also at the forefront race. Next up is the Gerd Muller Trophy, given to the highest top scorer of the year.

Interestingly, then we have the Socrates Award, given to the soccer player who did the most as a philanthropist, extending a hand to humanitarian contributions. Vinicius Jr, Antonio Rudiger, Alex Morgan, Asisat Oshoala, and Marcus Rashford are running for the trophy. Lastly, on the individual award list, we have the best coach of the year award.

In the men’s categories, Xabi Alonso (Bayer Leverkusen), Carlo Ancelotti (Real Madrid), Luis de la Fuente (Spain), Gian Piero Gasperini (Atalanta), Pep Guardiola (Man City), and Lionel Scaloni (Argentina) are against each other. Meanwhile, Sonia Bompastor (Lyon/Chelsea), Arthur Elias (Brazil), Jonatan Giraldez (Barcelona/Washington Spirit), Emma Hayes (Chelsea/USA), Filipa Patao (Benfica), and Sarina Wiegman (England) are in the women’s category.

Finally, we have Borussia Dortmund, Girona, Bayer Leverkusen, Man City, and Real Madrid for the Club of the Year award. Let the ceremony begin!