The shortlist for world football’s most prestigious individual award has been revealed ahead of the ceremony in Paris on September 22
The Ballon d’Or. Love it or loathe it, it’s the award every footballer in the world dreams of one day winning. And now, after a memorable 2024-25 campaign, the shortlist of nominees for the 2025 Golden Ball has been announced.
There are a host of top names vying to claim the prize that Rodri took home in 2024, with performances over the past 12 months – including at the recent Club World Cup – having been taken into account when selecting this year’s list of potential winners.
Who will take home the prize? Paris Saint-Germain forward Ousmane Dembele is the favourite with the bookmakers after his electric form in front of goal fired the French side to the treble, including their first-ever Champions League title, though he could face competition from within his own dressing room, with Vitinha and Achraf Hakimi among a clutch of PSG stars who have genuine cases to win themselves.
Elsewhere, Lamine Yamal truly announced himself as the game’s next superstar with his outstanding performances for Barcelona, while both his team-mate Raphinha and Liverpool’s Mohamed Salah returned remarkable goal and assist numbers on the way to securing league titles for their respective sides.
We will have to wait until the ceremony in Paris on Monday, September 22 to find out who will come out on top; for now, here are the players who have been shortlisted for football’s ultimate individual honour:
