1982: Paolo Rossi (Juventus, Italia)
1983: Michel Platini (Juventus, Prancis)
1984: Michel Platini (Juventus, Prancis)
1985: Michel Platini (Juventus, Prancis)
1986: Igor Belanov (Dynamo Kyiv, Uni Soviet)
1987: Ruud Gullit (AC Milan, Belanda)
1988: Marco van Basten (AC Milan, Belanda)
1989: Marco van Basten (AC Milan, Belanda)
1990: Lothar Matthäus (Internazionale, Jerman Barat)
1991: Jean-Pierre Papin (Marseille, Prancis)
1992: Marco van Basten (AC Milan, Belanda)
1993: Roberto Baggio (Juventus, Italia)
1994: Hristo Stoichkov (Barcelona, Bulgaria)
1995: George Weah (AC Milan, Liberia)
1996: Matthias Sammer (Borussia Dortmund, Jerman)
1997: Ronaldo (Internazionale, Brasil)