On December 18, 2001, Michael Owen received the 2001 Ballon d’Or, which is awarded to the finest football player in Europe as determined by a panel of sports journalists from UEFA member countries.
Owen was the fourth Englishman to receive the trophy, following Stanley Matthews in 1956, Bobby Charlton in 1966, and Kevin Keegan in 1977.
At his peak, he was unquestionably one of the best strikers in the world and deserved to win the Ballon d’Or. Michael Owen was 21 years when he won his first Ballon d’Or in 2001. He was the first Englishman to win this prize in two decades, two decades after the previous English player.
Owen was capped 89 times for England and scored 40 goals. He ranks sixth on the England team’s all-time scoring list, trailing Wayne Rooney (53), Bobby Charlton (49), Harry Kane (49), Gary Lineker (48), and Jimmy Greaves (44).
In addition, he is England’s second-highest goalscorer in competitive international matches, after only Wayne Rooney. With 89 caps, he is England’s eleventh most capped player.