Ballon d'Or 2025: PSG Dominates Nominee List, Messi & Ronaldo Absent

Ballon d'Or Nominee Overview

• 🏆 The prestigious Ballon d'Or award, crowning the season's best player, has announced its 30-man shortlist.
• 🚫 Notably, neither 2024 winner Rodri, nor past recipients Lionel Messi or Cristiano Ronaldo, made the list.

PSG's Strong Representation

• 🌟 Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) leads the nominations with a record nine players on the 30-man shortlist.
• 🇫🇷 Among the PSG nominees are French forward Usman Dembele, Desire Dou, and Spaniard Fabian Ruiz.
• 🌟 Former PSG star Kylian Mbappe, now with Real Madrid, is also nominated and is a contender to become France's sixth Ballon d'Or winner.

Other Key Contenders and Notables

• 🇪🇸 Lamine Yamal from FC Barcelona is another leading contender, though he faces a legal complaint from a disability rights group.
• ⚖️ Achraf Hakimi, also nominated, is facing legal scrutiny with French prosecutors requesting a trial for rape.
• 🇩🇪 Kylian Mbappe faces significant competition, including from FC Barcelona's Lamine Yamal.

Women's Ballon d'Or Nominees

• 🇫🇷 Two French players, Sandrine Baltimore and Clara Mateo, are among the nominees for the Women's Ballon d'Or.
• 🇪🇸 Barcelona's Aitana Bonmatí and Alexia Putellas, both two-time winners, are also in contention.
• 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 England has five players on the list, including Leah Williamson and Chloe Kelly, after their Euro final victory against Spain.
• 🇧🇷 Brazil's Marta Vieira da Silva, at 39, is the oldest female player nominated.