Ghana’s Michael Essien has been included in the list of fifty players nominated by France Football for the prestigious Ballon d'Or award.

Essien completed the list with his Chelsea teammate Didier Drogba of the Ivory Coast and Barcelona’s Cameroonian Samuel Eto’o Fils as the only African players in the fifty-man squad.

The Ghanaian midfielder and a host of players would be in the running for the gong, which was scooped by Milan striker Andrei Shevchenko last year.

The mantle of European Footballer of the Year accompanies the prize.

Liberian legend George Weah is the only African winner of the award to date.

Before Weah won it in 1995, the award, known as the Ballon d'Or, was not open to non-Europeans.

The winner will be announced on 28 November.

Earlier this month, Michael Essien, was among five new players who joined the contest for FIFA’s World Player of the Year award named this month.

Essien again with Chelsea teammate, Didier Drogba and Nigeria’s Jay Jay Okocha are the only African players to make it into the thirty-man hunt for the FIFA award.

FIFA would be announcing the winner on December 19 at the Zurich Opera House.