Ronwen Williams competes for Yashin Trophy

The Ballon d’Or Awards will be held on Monday evening, and Bafana Bafana captain Ronwen Williams is nominated for the Yashin Trophy.

Named after the famous Soviet goalkeeper Lev Yashin, this trophy is awarded each year to the best goalkeeper in the world.

Bafana Bafana captain Ronwen Williams is currently in France for the 2024 Ballon d’Or Awards, where he is up for the Yashin Trophy given to the best goalkeeper in the world.

The current holder is Aston Villa’s Emiliano Martínez, who won it after helping Argentina lift the 2022 World Cup, and he’s nominated again this year.

Since its introduction in 2019, no goalkeeper has won it twice.

Williams, who missed Mamelodi Sundowns’ surprising 1-0 loss to Polokwane City on Sunday because he was travelling to France, is the first player based in Africa to receive this nomination.

At the Africa Cup of Nations earlier this year, Williams impressed everyone by saving four penalties during a shootout against Cape Verde, helping Bafana Bafana reach the semi-finals.

He continued to shine in the third-place match against the Democratic Republic of Congo, making several key saves as South Africa secured the bronze medal, their best finish since 2000.

So, how can South Africans watch the Ballon d’Or Awards?

The event will be shown on SuperSport 3, starting with the build-up at 9pm and the ceremony kicking off at 9.45pm on Monday.

Williams will compete against several other top goalkeepers, including Emiliano Martínez, Diogo Costa (Portugal and FC Porto), Gianluigi Donnarumma (Italy and Paris Saint-Germain), Gregor Kobel (Switzerland and Borussia Dortmund), Andriy Lunin (Ukraine and Real Madrid), Mike Maignan (France and AC Milan), Giorgi Mamardashvili (Georgia and Valencia), Unai Simón (Spain and Athletic Bilbao), and Yann Sommer (Switzerland and Inter Milan).

Real Madrid’s Vinicius Jr is expected to win the main Ballon d’Or Award, while Barcelona’s Aitana Bonmatí is favoured to take the women’s prize.

Last week, Williams received three important nominations for the 2024 CAF Awards, including African Player of the Year, Goalkeeper of the Year, and Interclub Player of the Year for his performances with both club and country.

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