Presenting the finest footballers on the planet this year...
OVERVIEW FourFourTwo's eighth annual rundown of the planet's premier footballers, the 100 Best Football Players in the World 2014 features a few surprises, but nothing that hasn't been argued long and hard by our global network of experts.
3.15pm Infographics time We've been busy on the art desk, slicing and dicing the data for your visual delectation. Here's one: which club has the most players in the 100? Why, it's brilliant Bavarians Bayern Munich, with 14 players - or an entire team with three subs.
Next on the list is Real Madrid, pipping their Catalan cousins Barcelona 11 to 10; Juventus are next with nine, while Chelsea (eight) lead the Premier League charge. Speaking of which...
2.45pm Premier League Top 10 The videography department have been highlighting those players involved in the English top-flight... and check out the news story for the full breakdown, including a close-fought race between the two great Manchester rivals...
1.45pm And the 10 best players in the world are…
1.41pm Our friends on Snapchat have already had No.10 and No.9, with another face every 30 seconds...
1.40pmNumbers 20-11: The world's best defender, a 26-year-old veteran and the man who dictates Madrid's rhythm. (Contrary to misunderstandings on Facebook, these are not all the same person.)
1.35pmNumbers 30-21: Getting up the sharp end now, with Serie A's all-action 'Warrior', two stars who swapped Dortmund for Munich, and Barcelona's new midfield metronome.
1.30pm Presenting numbers 40-31, with a kid called Hamez and the only Premier League centre-back in the list.
1.25pm Into the top half with 50-41 and the highest-ranked Englishman, Bayern's new pass-master, and the one that got away from Man City.
1.20pmNumbers 60-51 span the ages, with our only teenager AND the oldest player on our list (twice the kid's age), plus Chelsea's 'evolving' starlet
1.15pm Here's Matt Bagby's hero, at No.70... and the nine blokes immediately in front of him, including Roma's 'Future Captain', a World Cup wing wonder, and the defender every top Premier League team is after.
1.10pm Up next: Numbers 80-71, including an Anfield hero, Atletico's newest superstar, and an Arsenal flop.
1.05pmNumbers 90-81 include a busy Premier League keeper, Juve's latest defensive rock, a Welshman nicknamed Rambo and two Spaniards called Dave.
1pm And it's live. The first 10 (from 100-91) have been revealed and here's the first talking-point - a certain Signor Balotelli at No.99. Should he be higher? Should he be unemployed?
Also in the first slice are the plummeting Dani Alves, the diminutive Mathiueu Valbuena and six new entries...
12.55pm Five minutes to the first reveal. Stand by your beds.
11.50am We asked on Twitter (#FFT100) who'd be in your top three. Besides the usual humorous replies, we got some interesting feedback...
11.40am Are you on Snapchat? We are, and we'll be using it to reveal the greatest players in the world. Follow us FourFourTwoUK and you'll get a world-exclusive first peek at the Top 10, starting at 1.45pm today.
10.45am At last, it's the most wonderful time of the year. Not December, but #FFT100: when we announce the 100 Best Football Players in the World.
After weeks of opinion-gathering from FourFourTwo's worldwide parade of experts, followed by days of intense arguing in the office, we've listed the planet's premier players.
Here's a little teaser...
The list will be revealed from 1pm GMT, a little under three hours from now. So let's start the arguments: who should be top? Would you back Cristiano Ronaldo or Lionel Messi… or is there someone else who could break up the duopoly? What about the Bayern Munich players?
Gary Parkinson is a freelance writer, editor, trainer, muso, singer, actor and coach. He spent 14 years at FourFourTwo as the Global Digital Editor and continues to regularly contribute to the magazine and website, including major features on Euro 96, Subbuteo, Robert Maxwell and the inside story of Liverpool's 1990 title win. He is also a Bolton Wanderers fan.
