Whilst the closest Swindon Town have ever been to the Ballon D'or was Massimo Luongo being nominated in 2015, many winners of the prestigious award have graced the County Ground pitch.

Many iconic players have visited Wiltshire throughout the years like Kevin De Bruyne, John Terry and Fernando Torres but only a few have won the trophy that officially awards them as the best in the world.

Rodri won the award on the 28th of October and became the fourth winner to have faced the Robins in a competitive fixture, but what other champions have faced Swindon?

Rodri – 2024 Winner

The most recent winner to have faced Town represented Manchester City in the FA Cup when they came to Wiltshire in early 2022.

The Cityzens ran out 4-1 winners thanks to goals from Bernardo Silva, Gabriel Jesus and İlkay Gündoğan, with Harry McKirdy firing past Zach Steffen to score a historic goal under the lights on a Friday night.

The Spanish midfielder almost got himself on the scoresheet with a great goal from distance but now-Wimbledon keeper Lewis Ward was equal to the effort and parried it away late on.

Luis Figo (non-competitive) – 2000 Winner

The Portuguese forward appeared in a pre-season friendly against Swindon for Sporting CP in 1993, two years before his move to FC Barcelona.

He scored past Fraser Digby and got the second goal of the game in the 24th minute which helped the Leões to a strong 6-1 win at the County Ground.

Centre-back Adi Viveash halved the deficit with 31 minutes on the clock in front of a crowd of 3,500.

Kevin Keegan – 1978, 1979 Winner

Whilst playing for Hamburger SV the two times he won the award, he donned the claret and blue of Scunthorpe United when he played at the County Ground, eight years before he was crowned the best player in Europe for the first time.

The Iron fell to a 3-1 defeat in Swindon with Peter Noble, Arthur Horsfield and John Trollope getting on the scoresheet in front of a crowd of 24,612.

It was a short stay in North Lincolnshire for ‘Mighty Mouse’ as he moved to top division side Liverpool before a stint in Hamburg.

George Best – 1968 Winner

The Northern Irish winger won the trophy whilst playing for Manchester United and came to Swindon nine years later.
Most notably known for his iconic stint with Manchester United, he faced the Robins twice with Fulham in the FA Cup.

It was not two games to remember in the third round for the skilled winger as they drew 3-3 at Craven Cottage before being ripped apart 5-0 in the replay.

Sir Bobby Charlton – 1966 Winner

One of the greatest English players of all time was playing for Preston North End in division three when he faced the Robins.

After leaving United in 1973, he joined the Lilywhites a year later and appeared twice against Swindon.

A Peter Eastoe goal for Town was the difference between the two sides in the first match, but Preston were able to take third place in the division with a 2-0 win a few days later in the second game.

Bobby Charlton visited St Joseph’s Lower School in 1988Bobby Charlton visited St Joseph’s Lower School in 1988 (Image: Dave Waters)