Commentary: Is the Ballon d’Or still credible?

Paris Saint-German forward Ousmane Dembélé with his first Ballon d'Or (Credit: AFP/Getty Images)

On Sept. 22, the 69th edition of the annual Ballon d’Or ceremony, presented by France Football and the Union of European Football Association (UEFA), presented the best players of the 2024-2025 season.

The ceremony, held in Paris, celebrated the greatest stars of this season, recognizing their accomplishments and efforts.

From Ousmane Dembélé, Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) forward, winning his first Ballon d’Or, to Aitana Bonmatí, FC Barcelona midfielder, winning her consecutive one in the women’s category.

For many, myself included, the results came as no surprise. Dembélé not only had an outstanding season, but also overcame his reputation for frequent injuries.

Elias Stiphout, a fourth-year student at STU, shared his thoughts on the results.

“I think [Dembélé] deserved it. He had a great season, considering he also won the Champions League and he was PSG’s best player as well,” he said.

In addition, PSG was recognized as “Men’s Club of the Year,” next to Arsenal being “Women’s Club of the Year.”

Following Luis Enrique, PSG coach, being awarded the Men’s Johan Cruyff Trophy for best male football coach.

I’m not surprised by the amount of recognition PSG has received this season after winning the Champions League, French Cup and Ligue 1.

Finally, the sensation of the moment, Lamine Yamal, who was nominated for the Ballon d’Or as well. However, he didn’t leave empty-handed, as he won his second Kopa Trophy for best young player.

As in every year, there was some controversy surrounding the results and ranking nominations.

There were some rumours that among all the nominees, Yamal had greater chances to win the Ballon d’Or this year.

He had an exceptional season after winning La Liga Española and the UEFA European Championship, especially for being a starter at a young age. However, Yamal didn’t win the Champions League, which could have affected his chance to win the Ballon d’Or. 

Others suggest that Yamal didn’t win the Ballon d’Or because of his age.

Javier Tebas, president of La Liga, said Yamal is such a great player, but he’s still too young and that if he were older, the results might have been different.

“I don’t think the results would have been any different if he was older. I think it was mainly because of the Champions League, as it is such an important tournament in soccer,” said Stiphout.

Despite Yamal’s accomplishments with FC Barcelona this season, many were not fully satisfied with how the nominations were ranked.

Vítor Machado, Raphael Dias, Mohamed Salah and Pedro González were also nominated for the Ballon d’Or.

The rankings seemed incoherent to me, as Raphinha not only outperformed Salah by winning La Liga, the Spanish Super Cup and the King’s Cup, but he still ranked fifth, one spot below him.

The common argument is that Liverpool won the Premier League.

But in terms of the Champions League, he was absent for the entire round of 16.

Pedri’s ranking is another extremely controversial topic, as he has been one of the best midfielders this season, if not the best.

Many argue that it’s because of his position and that he’s not given enough credit. However, Vitinha, who is also a midfielder, was ranked third and Rodrigo Hernández, who is also a midfielder, won the Ballon d’Or last year.

Samuel Choinière, a fourth-year student at STU, argued that Pedri’s contributions are often overlooked.

“I think people often forget about Pedri. He is the anchor who is controlling everything. He is the link between the defence and offence. I think people overlook a lot of the work that he’s doing,” he said.

Clearly, Dembélé and Yamal were the favourite players for the award, but Raphinha and Pedri had a better season than Yamal.

“I think what is nice about Barcelona is that it’s collective. You have Yamal, who is the star of the team, and the work he was able to do with Raphinha, both of them together, alongside with Pedri,” said Choinière.

We know that the Ballon d’Or doesn’t reward statistics but decisive moments.

This year, Dembélé stood out above the other nominees, thanks to his accomplishments throughout the season. 

Even though I’m not particularly a fan, his Ballon d’Or win feels both logical and well-deserved. However, every year, the award’s credibility is questioned due to its ranking and nomination decisions.

It will be interesting to see how this season unfolds and what surprises next year’s Ballon d’Or ceremony will bring.