# Best Footballer in Asia 2018

The Best Footballer in Asia award recognizes the best male footballer in Asia. Son Heung-min received the 6th annual award on 4 January 2019 for his play during the 2018 season. The event was judged by a panel of 44 sports journalists, and Son Heung-min won four of the six awards presented.

## Voting

44 judges were invited to vote, including 35 representatives from AFC nations/regions which comprise Afghanistan, Australia, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Cambodia, China, Chinese Taipei, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Japan, Jordan, Korea Republic, Kuwait, Kyrgyzstan, Lebanon, Macao, Malaysia, Myanmar, Oman, Palestine, Philippines, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Syria, Tajikistan, Thailand, Turkmenistan, United Arab Emirates, Uzbekistan, Vietnam and Yemen. The other nine jurors were independent Asian football experts or from well-known football media outlets. Before voting, all judges were given a 24-player shortlist, but could choose other eligible players.

## Rules

Each juror selects 5 best footballers and awards them 6, 4, 3, 2 and 1 point respectively from their first choice to the fifth choice. A trophy for the Best Footballer in Asia is awarded to the player with the highest total of points.

### Tiebreakers

When two or more candidates obtain the same points, the rankings of the concerned candidates would be based upon the following criteria in order:
* a) The number of 1st-place vote obtained
* b) The number of 2nd-place vote obtained
* c) The number of 3rd-place vote obtained
* d) The number of 4th-place vote obtained
If all conditions are equal, the concerned candidates tie.
If the concerned candidates are tied for first place, the award and the trophy are shared.

## Ranking

Source:
| Rank | Name | Club(s) | Points |
| 1 | Son Heung-min | Tottenham Hotspur | 206 |
| 2 | Makoto Hasebe | Eintracht Frankfurt | 64 |
| 3 | Alireza Beiranvand | Persepolis | 50 |
| 4 | Yuma Suzuki | Kashima Antlers | 46 |
| 5 | Baghdad Bounedjah | Al-Sadd | 31 |
| 6 | Wu Lei | Shanghai SIPG | 28 |
| 7 | Alireza Jahanbakhsh | AZ Brighton & Hove Albion | 28 |
| 8 | Neil Etheridge | Cardiff City | 26 |
| 9 | Takashi Inui | Eibar Real Betis | 26 |
| 10 | Abdelkarim Hassan | Al-Sadd | 24 |
| 11 | Yuya Osako | 1. FC Köln Werder Bremen | 20 |
| 12 | Aaron Mooy | Huddersfield Town | 19 |
| 13 | Mathew Ryan | Brighton & Hove Albion | 16 |
| 14 | Salman Al-Faraj | Al-Hilal | 15 |
| 15 | Nguyễn Quang Hải | Hanoi | 13 |
| 16 | Akram Afif | Al-Sadd | 12 |
| 17 | Kwoun Sun-tae | Kashima Antlers | 11 |
| 19 | Marcus Berg | Al-Ain | 9 |
| 18 | Hwang Ui-jo | Gamba Osaka | 9 |
| 20 | Gen Shoji | Kashima Antlers | 8 |
| 21 | Sunil Chhetri | Bengaluru | 7 |
| 21 | Jo Hyeon-woo | Daegu | 7 |
| 23 | Valery Kichin | Yenisey Krasnoyarsk | 4 |
| 24 | Caio | Al-Ain | 3 |
| 24 | Omar Kharbin | Al-Hilal | 3 |
| 24 | Paulinho | Barcelona Guangzhou Evergrande | 3 |
| 24 | Chanathip Songkrasin | Consadole Sapporo | 3 |
| 28 | Odil Ahmedov | Shanghai SIPG | 2 |
| 28 | Sardar Azmoun | Rubin Kazan | 2 |
| 28 | Shinji Kagawa | Borussia Dortmund | 2 |
| 28 | Kengo Nakamura | Kawasaki Frontale | 2 |
| 32 | Serginho | América Mineiro Kashima Antlers | 2 |
| 33 | Altymyrat Annadurdyyev | Altyn Asyr | 1 |
| 33 | Andrés Iniesta | Barcelona Vissel Kobe | 1 |
| 33 | Daigo Nishi | Kashima Antlers | 1 |