Ronaldo, Messi and Neuer in final three shortlist for Ballon d' Or

The FIFA has declared Cristiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi and Manuel Neuer as final three-man shortlisted candidates for this year's prestigious Ballon d'Or award, which is scheduled to announce the winner on 12 January.

While Portugal international Ronaldo will be defending the award after winning it last year, Messi will be aiming to win the honour for the fifth time.

Ronaldo scored 51 goals in the 2013-14 season, with helping Real Madrid to win the Champions League. On the other hand, Messi has become the leading La Liga goal scorer last month, with also holding the Champions League goalscoring record, the BBC reported.

Bayern Munich's Neuer has become the first goalkeeper after compatriot Oliver Kahn vying to claim the title as he played a key role to help Bayern to win Bundesliga title, which was followed by Germany winning the 2014 World Cup in Brazil.

Real Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti, Germany's World Cup winning boss Joachim Low and Atletico Madrid coach Diego Simeone have also been shortlisted for the FIFA coach of the year award.