On Friday, FIFA presented the candidates for the best player of 2016 award, with Croatia captain and Real Madrid midfielder Luka Modrić among the nominees. His performances were thus acknowledged for the second time in a short period, since he was recently also nominated for France Football's Golden Ball award.

The Best FIFA award ceremony will be held on 9 January 2017 in Zürich, with votes coming from national team captains and managers, fans, and selected media representatives. Voting closes on 22 November, and a 3-man shortlist will be presented on 2 December.

FIFA nominees:

Sergio Agüero (Argentina/Manchester City), Gareth Bale (Wales/Real Madrid), Gianluigi Buffon (Italy/Juventus), Cristiano Ronaldo (Portugal/Real Madrid), Kevin De Bruyne (Belgium/Manchester City), Antoine Griezmann (France/Atlético Madrid), Zlatan Ibrahimović (Sweden/Paris Saint-Germain/Manchester United), Andrés Iniesta (Spain/FC Barcelona), N’Golo Kanté (France/Leicester City/Chelsea), Toni Kroos (Germany/Real Madrid), Robert Lewandowski (Poland/Bayern), Riyad Mahrez (Algeria/Leicester City), Lionel Messi (Argentina/Barcelona), Luka Modrić (Croatia/Real Madrid), Manuel Neuer (Germany/Bayern), Neymar (Brazil/Barcelona), Mesut Özil (Germany/Arsenal), Dimitri Payet (France/West Ham United), Paul Pogba (France/Juventus/Manchester United), Sergio Ramos (Spain/Real Madrid), Alexis Sánchez (Chile/Arsenal), Luis Suárez (Uruguay/Barcelona), Jamie Vardy (England/Leicester City).