Real Madrid stars dominate the first Ballon D'or list released by the organisers with eight players. Los Blancos forward Gareth Bale is among the first five players to be shortlisted by France Football magazine for the 2018 Ballon d'Or.
The Real Madrid and Wales forward is joined on the list by his club-mate Karim Benzema, Liverpool and Brazil goalkeeper Alisson, Manchester City and Argentina striker Sergio Aguero and Paris Saint-Germain and Uruguay striker Edinson Cavani.
Twenty-five further nominees will be announced throughout Monday, with a 30-man shortlist eventually being drawn up ahead of the awards ceremony in Paris on December 3.
Portugal forward Cristiano Ronaldo, who joined Juventus from Real Madrid in the summer, won last year's Ballon d'Or and is again a contender.
Tottenham Hotspur striker Kane was among the third batch of nominees announced on Monday, along with Chelsea duo Eden Hazard and N'Golo Kante, Atletico Madrid defender Diego Godin, Real Madrid keeper Thibaut Courtois are also on the list.
The other two players third group of nominees were Madrid rivals star players Antoine Griezmann and Isco alongside Manchester City  midfielder Kevin de Bruyne and Liverpool forward Robert Firmino.
On the list also is Tottenham's gaolkeeper Hugo Lloris alongside African sensation Sadio Mane, Marcelo, young gun Kylian Mbappe and Mario Mandzukic.
Finally, Messi makes the list with fomer teammates Neymar and the most criticised Manchester United's Paul Pogba.
Mohamed Salah was also rewarded after a beautiful season with Liverpool last season alongside his attacker Sergio Ramos who injured him in the finals of the UEFA Champions League.
The Ballon d'Or is handed out by France Football, and is separate from FIFA's own world player of the year awards, known as The Best, which was won by Real Madrid's Croatian midfielder Luka Modric.
The shortlist is curated by the editorial office of France Football, and the winner is then picked from the list by a panel of international journalists, with one representative per country.
The Ballon d'Or is awarded according to three separate criteria. The panel judge nominees on: their performances during the calendar year, their talent and fair play, and their achievements throughout their career.
Each panel member picks their top five nominees, with their first pick being awarded six points, their second pick receiving four points, their third three points, their fourth two points and their final pick one point.
The player with the most points received once all panel members have cast their votes is awarded the Ballon d'Or. In the event of a tie, the player with the most first picks is given the trophy..
The ceremony to announce the winner will take place in Paris on 3 December, when a women's award will be presented for the first time. Portugal forward Cristiano Ronaldo, who joined Juventus from Real Madrid in the summer, won last year's Ballon d'Or.
What is the Ballon d'Or?
The Ballon d'Or has been awarded by France Football every year since 1956, with former England international Sir Stanley Matthews the first winner.
The list is compiled by the editorial staff of the French publication, with the winner voted for by journalists from around the world, with one representative per nation.
For six years it combined with world football's governing body to become the Fifa Ballon d'Or.
However, Fifa ended its association with the award in September 2016.
At Fifa's awards in September, Croatia and Real Madrid midfielder Luka Modric was named the world's best male player, while Brazil and Orlando Pride forward Marta won the best female player award.

2018 Ballon d'Or nominees
            
                   Position    Country    Club
Sergio Aguero    Forward    Argentina    Manchester City
Alisson        Goalkeeper    Brazil    Liverpool
Gareth Bale      Forward    Wales    Real Madrid
Karim Benzema    Forward    France    Real Madrid
Kevin de Bruyne    Midfielder    Belgium    Manchester City
Edinson Cavani    Forward    Uruguay    Paris St-Germain
Thibaut Courtois    Goalkeeper    Belgium    Real Madrid
Roberto Firmino    Forward    Brazil    Liverpool
Diego Godin       Defender    Uruguay    Atletico Madrid
Antoine Griezmann    Forward    France    Atletico Madrid
Eden Hazard        Forward    Belgium    Chelsea
Isco            Midfielder    Spain    Real Madrid
Harry Kane        Forward    England    Tottenham
N'Golo Kante        Midfielder    France    Chelsea
Hugo Lloris        Goalkeeper    France    Tottenham
Mario Mandzukic    Forward    Croatia    Juventus
Sadio Mane        Forward    Senegal    Liverpool
Marcelo        Defender    Brazil    Real Madrid
Kylian Mbappe    Forward    France    Paris St-Germain
Lionel Messi    Forward    Argentina    Barcelona
Luka Modric    Midfielder    Croatia    Real Madrid
Neymar        Forward    Brazil    Paris St-Germain
Jan Oblak        Goalkeeper    Poland    Atletico Madrid
Cristiano Ronaldo    Forward    Portugal    Juventus
Paul Pogba        Midfielder    France    Manchester United




Ballon d'Or winners: List of winners since 2008
2008    Cristiano Ronaldo    Lionel Messi    Fernando Torres
2009    Lionel Messi    Cristiano Ronaldo    Xavi
2010    Lionel Messi    Andres Iniesta    Xavi
2011    Lionel Messi    Cristiano Ronaldo    Xavi
2012    Lionel Messi    Cristiano Ronaldo    Andres Iniesta
2013    Cristiano Ronaldo    Lionel Messi    Franck Ribery
2014    Cristiano Ronaldo    Lionel Messi    Manuel Neuer
2015    Lionel Messi    Cristiano Ronaldo    Neymar
2016    Cristiano Ronaldo    Lionel Messi    Antoine Griezmann
2017    Cristiano Ronaldo    Lionel Messi    Neymar

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