Owen reflects on lack of domestic recognition
Former England international Owen has expressed his belief that his 2001 Ballon d'Or victory did not receive the level of acclaim typically reserved for winners of football's most prestigious individual prize. The striker made history at just 22 years old, but he suggests that the cultural perception of the award in the United Kingdom at the time differed significantly from the reverence seen on the continent.
Speaking about the reaction to his success, Owen noted a stark contrast between the English perspective and the respect he felt while playing in La Liga. "I believe I don't get the sort of credit that other people would get for winning the Ballon d'Or. It’s never been that important in our country. When I was in Spain, they said I was a hero for winning it. I’m immensely proud of winning it," he explained in a revealing interview with FourFourTwo.
Surpassing the world's elite in 2001
The scale of Owen's achievement is underlined by the calibre of players he beat to the trophy. The podium that year featured icons of the game, with Owen finishing ahead of Zinedine Zidane, Thierry Henry, Raul, and Rivaldo. He also outperformed fellow countryman David Beckham and Portuguese star Luis Figo to claim the top spot, a feat that he admits feels even more significant in hindsight than it did in the heat of his playing days.
Reflecting on the elite company he keeps, the former Real Madrid man confessed that he still keeps a record of the voting results on his mobile device. "I look down the list of names, and I still have it saved on my phone – a photo of the points system and who was second, third, fourth and the rest of it. You look at that list and it’s awe-inspiring. That’s all I ever wanted as a kid. I didn’t just want to be a footballer; I wanted to be the best footballer," Owen revealed.
The changing profile of the Golden Ball
Owen’s victory predated the era of extreme global visibility that defined the rivalry between Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi. For over a decade, that duo turned the Ballon d'Or into a central narrative of world football, but Owen believes that at 22, he perhaps did not grasp the full weight of the honour. He admitted that back then, he simply viewed it as another trophy to be won rather than a career-defining moment.
"Winning it feels better now than it did when I was playing. You're 22 -- it's just another trophy, and now I've got to win it again," Owen stated.
From Ballon d’Or glory to bitter decline
Tthe golden boy never reached those stratospheric heights again. A toxic cocktail of recurring hamstring injuries, misfortune, and catastrophic transfer business saw Liverpool’s momentum vanish after finishing runners-up to Arsenal in 2001-02. Rather than building an empire, Anfield's hierarchy blew their shot at supremacy with an infamous summer window, as Jamie Carragher later recalled: "We brought in El Hadji Diouf, Salif Diao and Bruno Cheyrou – guys who were expected to propel us, and it just went totally the opposite way."