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Ronaldo, Bale, Griezmann finalists for UEFA Player of the Year

Carl Recine / Reuters

UEFA released a three-man shortlist for the annual Player of the Year award Friday that honours the footballer considered the best over the previous season, and regardless of who wins, the trophy will call Madrid its home.

Real Madrid attack tandem Cristiano Ronaldo and Gareth Bale will vie for the award with Atletico Madrid stud Antoine Griezmann, with voting taking place during the Champions League group stage draw in Monaco on Aug. 25.

For only the second time since the award was introduced in 2010-11, Barcelona's two-time winner Lionel Messi is not among the three finalists.

The finalists were determined by journalists from each of UEFA's 55 member associations, who nominate five nominees each based on a point system, where the best rated receives five points, four for second, and so on.

Blaugrana brethren Luis Suarez (29 points) and Messi (25) narrowly missed out on the top-3, followed in order by Gianluigi Buffon (19), Pepe (9), Manuel Neuer (6), Toni Kroos (5), and Thomas Muller (2).

Taking into account exploits with both club and country, all three players advanced to the semi-finals of Euro 2016 while having decorated seasons individually in La Liga.

For Griezmann and Bale, making the shortlist for the annual award is a foray into uncharted territory, as only the pacey Welshman has made the top-10 in previous years when he finished eighth in the 2012-13 vote while at Tottenham.

Ronaldo won the award in 2013-14, besting Neuer and his Bayern Munich teammate Arjen Robben by a healthy margin, and on the heels of guiding Portugal to its first major tournament victory, he is the favourite to match Messi's pair of honours.

Here's a look at the previous finalists:

Year 1 2 3
2010-11 Lionel Messi Xavi Cristiano Ronaldo
2011-12 Andres Iniesta Lionel Messi Cristiano Ronaldo
2012-13 Franck Ribery Lionel Messi Cristiano Ronaldo
2013-14 Cristiano Ronaldo Manuel Neuer Arjen Robben
2014-15 Lionel Messi Luis Suarez Cristiano Ronaldo

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