Real Madrid's star Cristiano Ronaldo will be competing against the Barcelona pair of Lionel Messi and Neymar for the Ballon d'Or - the award given to the world footballer of the year by the FIFA.
The 30-year-old forward has been named the world's best footballer for the past two years following Messi's four-in-a-row, while Neymar has never won the award during his career, the Independent reported.
It is the eighth consecutive year that Ronaldo and Messi have been on the shortlist.
For the past two years, Ronaldo has again scored the most goals in Europe having scored 48 in 51 matches for club and country.
Meanwhile, Messi has scored 44 goals in 54 matches, while Neymar has found the net 42 times in the same number of matches.
The winners will be announced at a gala in Zurich on January 11.
The three contenders were chosen from a 23-man list that also included Wales and Real Madrid attacker Gareth Bale.
