Croatia's Luka Modric wins 2018 Ballon d'Or

"As a kid we all have dreams. My dream was to play for a big club and win important trophies," Modric said on accepting the award at a gala ceremony in Paris organized by France Football magazine.
The 33-year-old midfielder thanked his teammates on Real Madrid and the national team.
This is the first time in 10 years that the award has gone to anyone other than Barcelona's Lionel Messi or Modric's erstwhile Real Madrid teammate Cristiano Ronaldo, each with five trophies.
Modric said he felt truly honored to get the trophy after the decade-long dominance of "phenomenal players" such as Ronaldo and Messi.
"To win means I did something really special on the pitch this year, that's why 2017-18 was the year for me," he said of winning the Champions League for the fourth time with Real Madrid and leading Croatia to its first World Cup final, where they lost to France.
Modric was widely expected to receive the Ballon d'Or after being named FIFA Player of the Year.
Neither Ronaldo, who finished second in the voting, nor Messi, who was fifth, were present for the awards ceremony in Paris.
The third-place finisher, French international Antoine Griezmann, was on hand and the Atletico Madrid striker said he was "proud to be on the podium."
Another member of the World Cup-winning France squad, Kylian Mbappe, came fourth in the voting for the Ballon d'Or, but took home the inaugural Kopa Trophy for best under-21 player.
The gala also featured the first awarding of the women's Ballon d'Or, which went to Norway's Ada Hegerberg, 23, who plays professionally for Lyon.