The Best FIFA Football Awards 2025 ceremony took place on Tuesday, December 16, 2025, in Doha, Qatar. The date answers the main scheduling question; an exact start time should be checked against an official event announcement or broadcast listing.
This guide explains what the ceremony recognizes, how its awards differ, and how to follow a future edition without confusing the event date with voting or eligibility deadlines. It also covers time zones, the voting process, and the difference between FIFA’s awards and the Ballon d’Or. If you are looking for a specific winner or broadcast, use the relevant official record rather than assuming every category or viewing option is the same each year.
when is the best fifa football awards 2025?
The ceremony was held on Tuesday, December 16, 2025, in Doha, Qatar. That is the event date, rather than a nomination deadline, voting deadline, or date when FIFA announced a shortlist.
FIFA staged the awards in Doha during the period of its 2025 international football events in Qatar. If you saw different dates in search results, check what each date refers to: coverage may mention the voting window, the release of nominees, or another FIFA competition instead of the awards ceremony itself.
The event date does not establish a reliable start time for every viewer. Local schedules, broadcast arrangements, and streams can vary by market. FIFA’s official channels and the local broadcaster’s listing are the sensible places to confirm a start time or replay availability.
Quick date details
- Date: Tuesday, December 16, 2025
- Location: Doha, Qatar
- Event: The Best FIFA Football Awards ceremony
- Start time: Confirm through an official event or broadcast listing; do not infer it from the date alone
What does The Best FIFA Football Awards recognize?
The Best FIFA Football Awards are FIFA’s annual honors for notable performances and contributions in association football. The program includes individual awards for players, coaches, and goalkeepers, alongside honors that recognize a goal, supporters, fair play, and team selections.
The awards cover both the men’s and women’s game. That matters because a headline about “the FIFA best player” can be ambiguous: the event includes separate men’s and women’s player awards, not one combined player title.
The exact program and names of categories can be announced or adjusted by FIFA. Use the official category list for the relevant edition if you need to verify a specific award. A familiar category from a previous ceremony should not be treated as proof that the next edition has identical details.
Which awards are usually presented?
The table below summarizes the main types of honors associated with The Best FIFA Football Awards. It explains what each recognizes rather than listing nominees or winners, which change by edition.
| Award type | What it recognizes | Best for understanding |
|---|---|---|
| Player awards | Outstanding men’s and women’s players | Individual performance across the stated assessment period |
| Coach awards | Men’s and women’s team coaches | Leadership and results within the applicable eligibility period |
| Goalkeeper awards | Men’s and women’s goalkeepers | Goalkeeping performance, not simply the team’s final position |
| Goal awards | Notable goals, including the Puskás and Marta awards | Individual goals considered under the rules for that edition |
| Fan and fair-play honors | Supporter contributions or conduct recognized for fair play | Football contributions beyond an individual player ranking |
| Team selections | Player selections for FIFA’s World 11 teams | A selected lineup, rather than a single-player award |
Not every award follows the same selection method. Some involve voting, while other recognition can use a distinct process or specific category rules. The category’s own FIFA announcement is the best guide to what voters or selectors considered.
How the voting and selection process works
For many major individual honors, FIFA uses a voting process that brings together different parts of the football community. Depending on the award and edition, voters may include national-team coaches, national-team captains, football journalists, and fans. FIFA publishes the rules and voting details for each edition.
Do not assume that one group decides every award. The selection method can differ between player, coach, goalkeeper, goal, fan, and team honors. An award may also have specific eligibility dates or rules for what performances qualify. Those details explain why one season’s results cannot automatically be carried into the next award cycle.
Voting is also not the same as eligibility. A player may be eligible because of performances in a stated period, but that does not mean they are automatically nominated or selected. The shortlist, voting stage, and final result are separate steps.
- Check the eligibility window. FIFA identifies the period of performance considered for the award. The relevant dates may not match a calendar year or a club season.
- Read the category rules. Different honors can recognize different achievements and use different selection processes.
- Look for the official shortlist. A nomination is not a win, and a shortlist announcement is not the ceremony.
- Confirm the result after the event. Use FIFA’s announcement or full ceremony coverage to distinguish the winner from nominees and other honorees.
Practical point: When comparing a player’s performance with an award result, check the stated assessment period first. A strong season may fall partly outside the award’s eligibility window, which can make a comparison with another season misleading.
How to watch or follow the ceremony
Viewing access depends on the country and the arrangements for that edition. FIFA may provide information through its official digital platforms, while television or streaming rights can belong to local broadcasters. A link that worked for one country or year may not work for another.
To find the right listing, start with FIFA’s official event information and then check the broadcaster available in your location. Search for the full event name and the ceremony date, rather than relying on a general football schedule. If the ceremony has already taken place, look for an official replay, highlights, or published results.
Pay attention to time zones when a listing gives a start time. Doha uses Arabia Standard Time. A time shown for Doha will differ from the clock in North America, Europe, or other regions. Convert the listed local time for your location; do not assume the ceremony begins at the same hour everywhere.
Also distinguish the ceremony broadcast from clips posted afterward. Short videos often show selected speeches or award moments, not the complete program. If you want the full presentation, check whether the official source labels the video as a full replay.
The Best FIFA awards and the Ballon d’Or are different
The Best FIFA Football Awards and the Ballon d’Or are separate honors. FIFA organizes The Best awards, while the Ballon d’Or is organized by France Football. They may recognize players from overlapping periods, and a footballer can win both, but the awards do not share one voting process or one ceremony.
Their calendars may differ, too. That is why a player’s recognition at one event does not tell you when the other event takes place. If a search result mentions a different ceremony date, check whether it refers to FIFA’s awards, the Ballon d’Or, or another football honor.
There can also be differences in assessment periods, nominees, voting arrangements, and award categories. Comparing the results can be interesting, but it is important to compare the rules and dates before drawing conclusions about why the winners differ.
Common date and award mix-ups
Confusing the ceremony date with a voting deadline
The ceremony date is when the awards are presented. Voting closes earlier, and nominee announcements may happen earlier still. If a report gives a date that does not match December 16, it may be describing one of those earlier stages.
Treating the award year as the eligibility period
The number in an award’s name does not necessarily mean every performance from January through December of that year is included. FIFA sets an assessment period for the relevant categories. Read the published rules before treating a calendar year as the selection window.
Assuming there is one overall best-player prize
The ceremony has separate men’s and women’s player awards. It also recognizes coaches and goalkeepers in separate categories. A headline that refers to “the winner” may be talking about one specific category, so look for the award name before interpreting it.
Expecting the same broadcast everywhere
Rights and availability can differ by country, platform, and edition. A live stream listed for one market may be unavailable elsewhere. Check local listings as well as FIFA’s official event information, especially if you are looking for a replay.
Using an old category list as the current one
Award programs and category details can change. An older page may correctly describe a past ceremony but not the latest edition. For an exact list of categories, nominees, or voting rules, use the announcement for the specific year you are researching.
What to check if you need a winner or exact schedule
If the date is all you need, the answer is straightforward: the 2025 ceremony took place on December 16 in Doha. For other details, use a source that matches the question rather than treating every article about the event as interchangeable.
- For a winner: Find the category name and confirm the result in FIFA’s official results or event coverage.
- For nominees: Look for the official shortlist for the 2025 edition, not a list from a previous year.
- For voting rules: Read the FIFA announcement that describes the process for that particular category.
- For a start time: Check an official schedule or broadcaster listing and convert the time zone for your location.
- For video: Confirm whether a link is a live broadcast, full replay, highlights package, or short clip.
This approach avoids a common search trap: a page can mention the right award but answer a different question. The ceremony date, eligibility window, voting deadline, nominee release, and broadcast time are related, but they are not interchangeable.
Why the date can matter to fans
The ceremony brings together recognition from across the sport, but its date can also affect how fans follow the season. A voting period may close before the event, and an eligibility window may end before nominations are announced. Knowing which stage a date belongs to helps you understand what a story is actually reporting.
For supporters, the distinction is useful when sharing a voting link or discussing a shortlist. A fan vote, if available for a category, has its own rules and closing time. It is not open simply because the ceremony date is approaching. Check the official voting page and its deadline rather than relying on an old social post.
The date can also be useful for journalists, clubs, and football organizations preparing coverage. They may need to plan interviews or follow results across time zones. Even then, the ceremony date alone is not enough to build a schedule; arrival details, program timing, and media arrangements require their own confirmed information.
For readers checking a report after the event, use the date to place the story in sequence. An article published before December 16 may discuss nominees or expectations. One published after the ceremony may report results or reactions. Publication date and event date are not necessarily the same.
How to read FIFA award coverage carefully
A clear report should name the category, the year, and whether the information concerns a nominee or a winner. Those details matter because the awards cover multiple parts of football and present several honors at one event. If a headline omits the category, read beyond it before concluding which award was given.
Check whether a report distinguishes official information from commentary. A prediction is not a result, a fan poll is not necessarily the official vote, and a shortlist is not the final selection. These distinctions are particularly important when posts circulate quickly around an awards ceremony.
When you see a claim about a voting breakdown or selection rule, look for the rules FIFA published for that award year. A process remembered from an earlier edition may not apply to every category or later ceremony. If the source does not specify the year or award, treat the claim cautiously.
Finally, be wary of unsourced exact start times. Event listings can be revised, and media outlets may display times for their own pre-show rather than for the ceremony itself. A specific time is useful only when it is tied to a reliable listing and a clear time zone.
The answer to when is the best fifa football awards 2025 is Tuesday, December 16, 2025, in Doha, Qatar. The ceremony date is distinct from the voting deadline, eligibility period, nominee announcement, and local broadcast time.
For a winner, exact schedule, or replay, check FIFA’s official event information and the broadcaster serving your location. Confirm the category and time zone before sharing a result or setting a viewing reminder.