# Soviet Footballer of the Year

The award Soviet Footballer of the Year was awarded to the best footballer of the Soviet Union from 1964 until 1991. The poll was conducted among journalists by the weekly sport newspaper Football (Football-Hockey). Each journalist named his own top three player every year. Each place carried a point weight such as 1st place was worth 3 pts., 2nd - 2, and 3rd - 1.
The idea for the award appeared right after Lev Yashin has received Ballon d'Or award in 1963. The honours were awarded along with several other prizes and awards at the end of the competition season. For goalkeepers being not limited from the Soviet Footballer of the Year, also were awarded separate honours the "Best Goalkeeper of the Year". The best goal-scorer of the Soviet Top League was awarded with the "Best Topscorer of the Year". Before becoming an official award before 1964, in 1950s Moskovskij Komsomolets and Komsomolskaya Pravda were conducting own polls to honour the best footballer of the country.

## List of winners

| 0Year0 | 0Place0 | 0Player0 | 0Club0 | 0Points0 | 0Notes0 |
| 1964 | 01st | 0Valery Voronin0 | 0Torpedo Moscow0 | 186 | |
| 1964 | 02nd | 0Valentin Ivanov0 | 0Torpedo Moscow0 | 85 | |
| 1964 | 03rd | 0Slava Metreveli0 | 0Dinamo Tbilisi | 80 | |
| 1965 | 01st | 0Valery Voronin0 | 0Torpedo Moscow0 | ? | 0Only the winners were announced; it was later established that0 0Streltsov finished 2nd.0 |
| 1965 | 02nd | 0Eduard Streltsov0 | 0Torpedo Moscow0 | ? | 0Only the winners were announced; it was later established that0 0Streltsov finished 2nd.0 |
| 1966 | 01st | 0Andriy Biba0 | 0Dynamo Kyiv0 | 94 | 0Yashin and Shesternev obtained an equal number points,0 0but Yashin was ranked higher for having more 1st place votes.0 |
| 1966 | 02nd | 0Lev Yashin0 | 0Dynamo Moscow 0 | 75 | 0Yashin and Shesternev obtained an equal number points,0 0but Yashin was ranked higher for having more 1st place votes.0 |
| 1966 | 03rd | 0Albert Shesternev0 | 0CSKA Moscow | 75 | 0Yashin and Shesternev obtained an equal number points,0 0but Yashin was ranked higher for having more 1st place votes.0 |
| 1967 | 01st | 0Eduard Streltsov0 | 0Torpedo Moscow0 | 155 | |
| 1967 | 02nd | 0Murtaz Khurtsilava0 | 0Dinamo Tbilisi 0 | 84 | |
| 1967 | 03rd | 0Anatoliy Byshovets0 | 0Dynamo Kyiv 0 | 31 | |
| 1968 | 01st | 0Eduard Streltsov0 | 0Torpedo Moscow0 | 206 | |
| 1968 | 02nd | 0Murtaz Khurtsilava0 | 0Dinamo Tbilisi 0 | 107 | |
| 1968 | 03rd | 0Albert Shesternev0 | 0CSKA Moscow 0 | 41 | |
| 1969 | 01st | 0Vladimir Muntyan0 | 0Dynamo Kyiv0 | 223 | |
| 1969 | 02nd | 0Anzor Kavazashvili0 | 0Spartak Moscow 0 | 170 | |
| 1969 | 03rd | 0Albert Shesternev0 | 0CSKA Moscow 0 | 76 | |
| 1970 | 01st | 0Albert Shesternyov0 | 0CSKA Moscow0 | 298 | |
| 1970 | 02nd | 0Vladimir Fedotov0 | 0CSKA Moscow 0 | 159 | |
| 1970 | 03rd | 0Viktor Bannikov0 | 0Dynamo Kyiv 0 | 73 | |
| 1971 | 01st | 0Evhen Rudakov0 | 0Dynamo Kyiv0 | 298 | |
| 1971 | 02nd | 0Viktor Kolotov0 | 0Dynamo Kyiv 0 | 200 | |
| 1971 | 03rd | 0Eduard Markarov0 | 0Ararat Yerevan 0 | 61 | |
| 1972 | 01st | 0Yevgeny Lovchev0 | 0Spartak Moscow0 | 188 | |
| 1972 | 02nd | 0Evhen Rudakov0 | 0Dynamo Kyiv 0 | 156 | |
| 1972 | 03rd | 0Murtaz Khurtsilava0 | 0Dinamo Tbilisi 0 | 140 | |
| 1973 | 01st | 0Oleg Blokhin0 | 0Dynamo Kyiv0 | 207 | |
| 1973 | 02nd | 0Arkady Andriasyan0 | 0Ararat Yerevan0 | 156 | |
| 1973 | 03rd | 0Vladimir Pilguy0 | 0Dynamo Moscow0 | 82 | |
| 1974 | 01st | 0Oleg Blokhin0 | 0Dynamo Kyiv0 | 236 | |
| 1974 | 02nd | 0Vladimir Veremeev0 | 0Dynamo Kyiv0 | 62 | |
| 1974 | 03rd | 0Aleksandr Prokhorov0 | 0Spartak Moscow0 | 60 | |
| 1975 | 01st | 0Oleg Blokhin0 | 0Dynamo Kyiv0 | 362 | |
| 1975 | 02nd | 0Vladimir Veremeev0 | 0Dynamo Kyiv0 | 108 | |
| 1975 | 03rd | 0Yevgeni Lovchev0 | 0Spartak Moscow0 | 99 | |
| 1976 | 01st | 0Vladimir Astapovskiy0 | 0CSKA Moscow0 | 256 | |
| 1976 | 02nd | 0David Kipiani0 | 0Dinamo Tbilisi0 | 136 | |
| 1976 | 03rd | 0Oleg Blokhin0 | 0Dynamo Kyiv0 | 116 | |
| 1977 | 01st | 0David Kipiani0 | 0Dinamo Tbilisi0 | 323 | |
| 1977 | 02nd | 0Oleg Blokhin0 | 0Dynamo Kyiv0 | 198 | |
| 1977 | 03rd | 0Yuriy Dehteryov0 | 0Shakhter Donetsk0 | 171 | |
| 1978 | 01st | 0Ramaz Shengelia0 | 0Dinamo Tbilisi0 | 235 | |
| 1978 | 02nd | 0Oleg Blokhin0 | 0Dynamo Kyiv0 | 156 | |
| 1978 | 03rd | 0Georgi Yartsev0 | 0Spartak Moscow0 | 135 | |
| 1979 | 01st | 0Vitali Starukhin0 | 0Shakhter Donetsk0 | 248 | |
| 1979 | 02nd | 0Vagiz Khidiyatullin0 | 0Spartak Moscow0 | 175 | |
| 1979 | 03rd | 0Yuri Gavrilov0 | 0Spartak Moscow0 | 172 | |
| 1980 | 01st | 0Aleksandr Chivadze0 | 0Dinamo Tbilisi0 | 259 | |
| 1980 | 02nd | 0Oleg Blokhin0 | 0Dynamo Kyiv0 | 187 | |
| 1980 | 03rd | 0Vagiz Khidiyatullin0 | 0Spartak Moscow0 | 103 | |
| 1981 | 01st | 0Ramaz Shengelia0 | 0Dinamo Tbilisi0 | 360 | |
| 1981 | 02nd | 0Oleg Blokhin0 | 0Dynamo Kyiv0 | 217 | |
| 1981 | 03rd | 0Leonid Buryak0 | 0Dynamo Kyiv0 | 112 | |
| 1982 | 01st | 0Rinat Dasaev0 | 0Spartak Moscow0 | 400 | |
| 1982 | 02nd | 0Anatoliy Demyanenko0 | 0Dynamo Kyiv0 | 120 | |
| 1982 | 03rd | 0Andrei Yakubik0 | 0Pakhtakor Tashkent0 | 117 | |
| 1983 | 01st | 0Fyodor Cherenkov0 | 0Spartak Moscow0 | 442 | |
| 1983 | 02nd | 0Rinat Dasaev0 | 0Spartak Moscow0 | 181 | |
| 1983 | 03rd | 0Aleksandr Chivadze0 | 0Dinamo Tbilisi0 | 91 | |
| 1984 | 01st | 0Hennadiy Litovchenko0 | 0Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk0 | 397 | |
| 1984 | 02nd | 0Mikhail Biryukov0 | 0FC Zenit Leningrad0 | 222 | |
| 1984 | 03rd | 0Yuri Gavrilov0 | 0Spartak Moscow0 | 75 | |
| 1985 | 01st | 0Anatoliy Demyanenko0 | 0Dynamo Kyiv0 | 409 | |
| 1985 | 02nd | 0Oleg Protasov0 | 0Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk0 | 393 | |
| 1985 | 03rd | 0Fyodor Cherenkov0 | 0Spartak Moscow0 | 306 | |
| 1986 | 01st | 0Aleksandr Zavarov0 | 0Dynamo Kyiv0 | 357 | 0In 1986 Igor Belanov won the Ballon d'Or0 0but could not become the best player in USSR.0 |
| 1986 | 02nd | 0Igor Belanov0 | 0Dynamo Kyiv0 | 313 | 0In 1986 Igor Belanov won the Ballon d'Or0 0but could not become the best player in USSR.0 |
| 1986 | 03rd | 0Oleg Blokhin0 | 0Dynamo Kyiv0 | 81 | 0In 1986 Igor Belanov won the Ballon d'Or0 0but could not become the best player in USSR.0 |
| 1987 | 01st | 0Oleg Protasov0 | 0Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk0 | 256 | |
| 1987 | 02nd | 0Alexei Mikhailichenko0 | 0Dynamo Kyiv0 | 144 | |
| 1987 | 03rd | 0Rinat Dasaev0 | 0Spartak Moscow0 | 120 | |
| 1988 | 01st | 0Alexei Mikhailichenko0 | 0Dynamo Kyiv0 | 482 | |
| 1988 | 02nd | 0Rinat Dasaev0 | 0Spartak Moscow0 | 109 | |
| 1988 | 03rd | 0Fyodor Cherenkov0 | 0Spartak Moscow0 | 81 | |
| 1989 | 01st | 0Fyodor Cherenkov0 | 0Spartak Moscow0 | 345 | |
| 1989 | 02nd | 0Stanislav Cherchesov0 | 0Spartak Moscow0 | 172 | |
| 1989 | 03rd | 0Vladimir Bessonov0 | 0Dynamo Kyiv0 | 164 | |
| 1990 | 01st | 0Igor Dobrovolski0 | 0Dynamo Moscow0 | 259 | |
| 1990 | 02nd | 0Sergei Yuran0 | 0Dynamo Kyiv0 | 115 | |
| 1990 | 03rd | 0Aleksandr Mostovoi0 | 0Spartak Moscow0 | 68 | |
| 1991 | 01st | 0Igor Kolyvanov0 | 0Dynamo Moscow0 | 229 | |
| 1991 | 02nd | 0Aleksandr Mostovoi0 | 0Spartak Moscow0 | 153 | |
| 1991 | 03rd | 0Igor Korneev0 | 0CSKA Moscow0 | 148 | |

## Most wins by club

| Club | 0Winners0 | 0Winning years0 |
| 0Dynamo Kyiv | 9 | 01966, 1969, 1971, 1973, 1974, 1975, 1985, 1986, 19880 |
| 0Dynamo Tbilisi | 4 | 01977, 1978, 1980, 1981 |
| 0Spartak Moscow | 4 | 01972, 1982, 1983, 1989 |
| 0Torpedo Moscow | 4 | 01964, 1965, 1967, 1968 |
| 0CSKA Moscow | 2 | 01970, 1976 |
| 0Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk0 | 2 | 01984, 1987 |
| 0FC Dynamo Moscow | 2 | 01990, 1991 |
| 0Shakhter Donetsk | 1 | 01979 |

## Most wins by player

| Name | 0Wins0 | 0Winning years0 |
| 0Oleg Blokhin | 3 | 01973, 1974, 19750 |
| 0Fyodor Cherenkov0 | 2 | 01983, 19890 |
| 0Ramaz Shengelia0 | 2 | 01978, 19810 |
| 0Eduard Streltsov | 2 | 01967, 19680 |
| 0Valery Voronin | 2 | 01964, 19650 |