Bayern defender Min-Ja Kim, who played for Beijing Guoan and finished 22nd in the 2023 Ballon d'Or voting, is also the highest-ranked defender in this year's Ballon d'Or voting. If you remove the "since leaving CSL" setting, Didier Drogba (8th in 2012) and Mascherano and Yaya Toure (old friends from CSL) rank higher among CSL's oldest friends in the Ballon d'Or, all of whom are in the top 20 of the Ballon d'Or.
