This year, the Ballon d'Or will be awarded for the 69th time // Photo: francefootball.fr
The French club PSG, which won the Champions League last season and reached the final of the Club World Cup, has the largest representation on the list. Experts call strikers Ousmane Dembele (PSG) and Lamine Yamal (Barcelona) the favorites to win the award this year.
Almost a third of the entire list (nine out of 30) are players of the club from Paris (see table). Four players each represent Barcelona (Spain) and Liverpool (England), but German midfielder Florian Wirz played all last season in Bayer 04 (Germany) and only in the summer moved to the English club. Spanish Real Madrid are represented by three players.
It is noteworthy that the winner of the Club World Cup – Chelsea (England) – is represented by only one player on the list. Cole Palmer, who decided the outcome of the final confrontation with PSG (3:0) and was recognized as the best player of the tournament, will compete with the other 29 contenders for the Ballon d’Or.
Inter Miami (USA) Argentine striker Lionel Messi, the record holder of the award (eight times), and five-time winner, Al-Nassr (Saudi Arabia) Portuguese striker Cristiano Ronaldo, are not among the nominees for the second consecutive year. For more than 10 years, the main battle for the Ballon d’Or has been between these two players.
The annual Ballon d’Or award was established by former France Football editor-in-chief Gabriel Ano and was first presented in 1956. From 1956 to 2006, the winner of the award was determined by a vote of journalists; since 2007, coaches and captains of national teams have the right to vote.
The following awards will be presented in 2025: men’s and women’s Golden Balls, Kopa Trophy (best player under 21), Lev Yashin Trophy (best goalkeeper), Gerd Müller Trophy (top scorer), best club of the season (men’s and women’s soccer), coaches of the year (men’s and women’s clubs).
The awards ceremony will be held on September 22 at the Châtelet Theater in the French capital. Last year’s Ballon d’Or was awarded to Manchester City (England) Spanish midfielder Rodri. This year he is absent from the list of candidates, as he almost did not play because of a serious injury.
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Contenders for the Ballon d’Or 2025 |
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Footballer |
Country of origin |
Club |
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Goalkeeper |
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Gianluigi Donnarumma |
Italy |
PSG |
|
Defenders |
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Virgil van Dijk |
Netherlands |
“Liverpool |
|
Nuno Mendes |
Portugal |
PSG |
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Ashraf Hakimi |
Morocco / Spain |
PSG |
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Midfielders |
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Jude Bellingham |
England |
“Real” |
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Florian Wirz |
Germany |
“Bayer 04 / Liverpool |
|
Vitinha |
Portugal |
PSG |
|
Rafael Dias |
Brazil |
“Barcelona” |
|
Desiree Douet |
France |
PSG |
|
Denzel Dumfries |
Netherlands / Aruba |
“Inter” |
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Vinicius Júnior |
Brazil |
“Real” |
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Khvicha Kvaratskhelia |
Georgia |
PSG |
|
Alexis Mc Allister |
Argentina |
“Liverpool |
|
Scott McTominay |
Scotland |
“Napoli (Italy) |
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João Neves |
Portugal |
PSG |
|
Michael Oliseh |
France / England |
“Bayern Munich |
|
Cole Palmer |
England |
“Chelsea |
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Pedri |
Spain |
“Barcelona |
|
Declan Rice |
England |
“Arsenal |
|
Fabian Ruiz |
Spain |
PSG |
|
Forwards |
||
|
Serou Guirassi |
France / Guinea |
“Borussia Dortmund |
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Ousmane Dembele |
France |
PSG |
|
Viktor Gyokeres |
Sweden / Hungary | “Sporting / Arsenal |
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Harry Kane |
England |
“Bayern Munich |
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Robert Lewandowski |
Poland |
“Barcelona |
|
Lautaro Martinez |
Argentina |
“Inter |
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Kylian Mbappe |
France |
“Real |
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Mohamed Salah |
Egypt |
“Liverpool |
| Erling Holand | Norway |
“Manchester City |
| Lamine Yamal | Spain |
“Barcelona” |
