On its 25th anniversary of honouring world football’s top performers in 2016, FIFA decided to take the game’s most prestigious individual award in a new, modern direction. One that reflects the organisation’s mission of bringing football centre stage.

The idea was to connect directly with the football world. To speak the language informally used by those who love the game – and who consider a player, a coach or a goal to be simply “the best”.

The Best FIFA Football Awards™ were born under this sign. It is a celebration made for and by the most important actors of the football scene – the players, coaches and fans. They are the ones making the decisions.

The Best trophies for player and coach of the year, in both men’s and women’s football, will be the result of a combined voting process, involving captains and head coaches of all national teams around the globe, an online ballot of fans and the submissions from a selected group of more than 200 media representatives.

Players, coaches, fans and media all have a say. An award voted directly by those who are the heart and soul of the football world. “This event should be all about the game. Nothing else,” summed up FIFA President Gianni Infantino.

The voice of the football fan had never been taken into account this way before. The Best FIFA Football Awards came forth as a celebration of those who love the sport, encapsulated by the inception of the inaugural FIFA Fan Award – an annual recognition of remarkable moments that feature supporters as protagonists. “We want to be close to the football fans. We must. The game would be nothing without them,” explains FIFA’s Deputy Secretary General Zvonimir Boban.

The brand narrative for The Best FIFA Football Awards™ was inspired by how numbers have the power to shape our perception of football. How a numeral on the back of a shirt can become synonymous with a position on the pitch; a historic milestone; the brilliance of a legendary player. The brand revisits football history and brings us back to our warmest memories.

The inspiration comes from the power and passion of football greats who are on every fan’s preferred 11. We all have a beloved No10, a favoured No6 or a chosen No7 – all special numbers that became legendary as they were worn by true football myths. This is the essence of the logotype: legendary numbers playing the role of letters, shaping a platinum The Best to convey in the ultimate award of the most passionate sport of all.

The Best is a brand that looks to bring football back where it belongs: close to our hearts.