The highly anticipated Ballon d’Or – the most prestigious individual award in soccer – ceremony has concluded. Today, we’re going over the results.
In total, 13 awards were handed out at the ceremony, including the prestigious Men’s Ballon d’Or. There were 5 women’s trophies handed out. Barcelona’s Ewa Pajor received the Gerd Müller trophy, English goalkeeper Hannah Hampton won the Yashin Trophy, and Barcelona’s Vicky Lopez got the Kopa Trophy. Sarina Wiegman, Euro-winning England’s manager, won Women’s Manager of the Year. UEFA Women’s Champions League-winning Arsenal won Women’s Club of the Year. The Spanish Barcelona superstar, Aitana Bonmati, took home her third straight Women’s Ballon d’Or.
The Socrates Trophy, an award recognizing humanitarian work, went to Foundation Xana.
The first notable men’s award handed out was the Kopa Trophy, which is presented to the best player of the year under 21 years of age. It was no surprise that the 18-year-old Spanish superstar Lamine Yamal took this one home, becoming the only player to win back-to-back Kopa Trophies.
The Gerd Müller Trophy is an award for the highest-scoring striker of the year. Viktor Gyokeres, previously Sporting CP’s striker (now Arsenal), hammered in 39 goals in the 2024-25 season, so he took this one.
Gianluigi Donnarumma, previously Paris Saint-Germain’s goalkeeper (now Manchester City), won the Yashin Trophy. This was well deserved, considering he was the backbone of their Champions League-winning side. To go along with that, Paris Saint-Germain won the Men’s Club of the Year, and their manager, Luis Enrique, won Men’s Manager of the Year.
The 2025 Men’s Ballon d’Or was one of the most anticipated Ballon d’Ors yet. There has been speculation all year. The main contenders were Liverpool’s Mohammed Salah, Barcelona’s Lamine Yamal, Barcelona’s Raphinha, Real Madrid’s Kylian Mbappe, and PSG’s Vitinha. PSG forward and French international Ousmane Dembele came into the ceremony as the betting favorite. The main head-turner of the event was Raphinha coming in 5th place. Many people saw Raphinha as the favorite due to his exceptional Champions League campaign.
The 2 contenders came down to Lamine Yamal and Ousmane Dembele. Lamine Yamal was the crowd favorite all year. His PR campaign is mainly driven by fans of F.C. Barcelona is unlike anything we have ever seen. Many people thought this PR would take him all the way to winning the Ballon d’Or.
The anticipation was palpable in the theater. Former Barcelona and PSG winger Ronaldinho was in attendance to hand the award to the winner. The top two came down to Barcelona’s Lamine Yamal and PSG’s Ousmane Dembele. The winner was… Ousmane Dembele. Ultimately, Lamine Yamal’s PR campaign fell just short, but took him all the way to second place, which is remarkable for his young age. However, Dembele’s accomplishments cannot be understated. In 53 matches, Dembele had 35 goals and 15 assists. He also provided two assists in the Champions League final, the biggest game in club soccer.
With a new season underway, can Ousmane Dembele hold his own and keep the Golden Ball? Or will someone new shock us? With the World Cup in the USA this summer, the Ballon d’Or winner will surely be highly influenced by the winner.
Photo Cred: Sports Illustrated
