votes were cast by coaches of the 48 teams in the group stage, together with 55 journalists selected by the european sports media (esm) group, representing each of uefa's member associations. the coaches were not allowed to vote for players from their own teams. jury members selected their top three players, with the first receiving five points, the second three and the third one. the shortlist of the top three players was announced on 9 august 2018. the award winner was announced during the 2018–19 uefa europa league group stage draw in monaco on 31 august 2018.