The Puskas Award is presented as part of FIFA’s The Best ceremony, which takes place in 2025 on Tuesday, December 16 in Doha.
Launched in 2009 and named after Real Madrid great Ferenc Puskas, the prize recognises the outstanding goal scored in world football every year.
In 2024, FIFA announced it would present the Marta Award to the scorer of the best women’s goal over the past 12 months, meaning the Puskas prize was only available to male players.
Here’s everything else you need to know about the Puskas Award, including a list of former winners and the nominees for the 2025 gong.
Puskas Award winners all-time list
The most recent winner of the Puskas Award is Santiago Montiel in 2025 for his ludicrous overhead kick from outside the penalty area.
Independiente 1 – Ind. Rivadavia 0
⚽️ Puskas, here we go…#Golazo pic.twitter.com/DgiPbV2aqs
— Argentina Football Shirts 🇦🇷 (@ARGshirts) May 11, 2025
The first winner was Cristiano Ronaldo, thanks to a thunderous 40-yard strike for Manchester United against Porto in a 2009 UEFA Champions League clash. Alejandro Garnacho claimed the prize for 2024 thanks to his remarkable bicycle kick against Everton in November 2023.
😱 @agarnacho7 😱
Vote now for the FIFA Puskas Award 2024! 🗳️
🎥 Premier League
— FIFA World Cup (@FIFAWorldCup) December 2, 2024
The likes of Neymar, James Rodriguez, and Mohamed Salah some of the other recognisable names on the list but Lionel Messi has never managed to put it among his countless career accolades.
No player has yet won the Puskas Award twice and there are 11 new names in contention for the 2024 prize. It has been a stage for previously unheralded players, such as Polish amputee footballer and 2022 winner Marcin Oleksy.
Prior to the advent of the Marta Award, female players were nominated for the main Puskas Award. Heather O’Reilly was the first woman nominated in 2011, while Stephanie Zambra came second behind Rodriguez in 2014. Scotland star Caroline Weir is the only women’s player to receive multiple nominations.
| Year | Player | Team | Match / Goal |
| 2025 | Santiago Montiel | Independiente | vs. Independiente Rivadavia (1-0) |
| 2024 | Alejandro Garnacho | Man United | vs. Everton (1-0) |
| 2023 | Guilherme Madruga | Botafogo | vs. Novorizontino (1-0) |
| 2022 | Marcin Oleksy | Warta Poznan | vs. Stal Rzeszow (1-0) |
| 2021 | Erik Lamela | Tottenham | vs. Arsenal (1-0) |
| 2020 | Son Heung-Min | Tottenham | vs. Burnley (3-0) |
| 2019 | Daniel Zsori | Debrecen | vs. Ferencvaros (2-1) |
| 2018 | Mohamed Salah | Liverpool | vs. Everton (1-0) |
| 2017 | Oliver Giroud | Arsenal | vs. Crystal Palace (1-0) |
| 2016 | Mohd Faiz Subri | Penang | vs. Pahang (4-1) |
| 2015 | Wendell Lira | Goianesia | vs. Atletico Goianiense (1-0) |
| 2014 | James Rodriguez | Colombia | vs. Uruguay (1-0) |
| 2013 | Zlatan Ibrahimovic | Sweden | vs. England (4-2) |
| 2012 | Miroslav Stoch | Fenerbahce | vs. Genclerbirligi (6-1) |
| 2011 | Neymar | Santos | vs. Flamengo (4-5) |
| 2010 | Hamit Altintop | Turkey | vs. Kazakhstan (2-0) |
| 2009 | Cristiano Ronaldo | Man United | vs. Porto (1-0) |
Puskas Award 2025 nominees
You can watch all 11 nominated goals for the 2025 Puskas Award here.
| Nominee | Team | Competition | Match |
| Alerrandro | Vitoria | Brasileiro Serie A | vs. Cruzeiro; Aug. 19, 2024 |
| Alessandro Deiola | Cagliari | Serie A | vs. Venezia; May 18 |
| Pedro de la Vega | Cruz Azul | CONCACAF Leagues Cup | vs. Seattle Sounders; July 31 |
| Santiago Montiel | Independiente | Argentine Primera Division | vs. Independiente Rivadavia; July 31 |
| Amr Nasser | Pharco | Egypt Capital Cup | vs. Al Ahly; April 17 |
| Carlos Orrantia | Atlas | Liga MX | vs. Queretaro; April 16 |
| Lucas Ribeiro | Mamelodi Sundowns | FIFA Club World Cup | vs. Borussia Dortmund; June 21 |
| Declan Rice | Arsenal | UEFA Champions League | vs. Real Madrid; April 8 |
| Rizky Ridho | Persija Jakarta | Indonesian Liga 1 | vs. Arema; March 9 |
| Kevin Rodrigues | Kasimpasa | Turkish Super Liga | vs. Rizespor; February 9 |
| Lamine Yamal | Barcelona | La Liga | vs. Espanyol; May 15 |
Who was Ferenc Puskas?
Ferenc Puskas was a forward who played for Real Madrid and the Hungary national team. He is considered one of the finest players in history.
Born in April 1927, Puskas won five consecutive La Liga titles and three European Cups with Madrid. He also won Olympic gold with Hungary in 1952 and inspired the team to the final of the FIFA World Cup two years later.
One of the great goal-scoring forwards in history, Puskas is credited with netting 619 goals in 618 club matches in Hungary and Spain. He also scored 84 goals in 85 senior international matches for the ‘Mighty Magyars’, Hungary’s golden generation of the 1950s and 1960s.
Puskas died in November 2006. The Puskas Award was named in his honour three years later.
