PARIS SAINT-GERMAIN star Ousmane Dembele is tipped to beat Barcelona sensation Lamine Yamal and win the men’s Ballon d’Or at the Theatre du Chatelet ceremony.
The cream of world football will gather in central Paris to discover the latest winners of an award long dominated by Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo.
Those two legends won the Ballon d’Or 13 times between them from 2008 to 2023 before Manchester City midfielder Rodri claimed last year’s prize after captaining Spain to Euro 2024 glory.
Dembele has emerged as the favourite from a list of nominees dominated by PSG players after Rodri’s injury-marred season ruled him out of contention.
Nine members of the PSG team that won the Champions League, demolishing Inter Milan 5-0 in the final, feature among the 30 nominees.
The PSG contingent includes Desire Doue, Achraf Hakimi, Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, Nuno Mendes, Joao Neves, Fabian Ruiz, Vitinha, and goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma.
Dembele stands out after a magnificent season in which he filled the void left by the departed Kylian Mbappe by scoring 35 goals for the French champions.
His contribution helped PSG complete a domestic clean sweep and reach the final of the Club World Cup during a spectacular campaign.
The 28-year-old winger turned centre-forward enjoyed his most prolific season ever, surpassing his previous best of 14 goals for Barcelona in 2018/19.
Dembele told Le Monde that being a leading contender for the prize was nice after what was a wonderful season with PSG.
He acknowledged being one of the favourites for what he described as the individual Holy Grail while remaining cautious about the final outcome.
Yamal stands out among other nominees having emerged as a superstar on the wing at Barcelona where he is seen as the successor to Messi.
The 18-year-old won the Kopa Trophy for the best player aged under 21 at last year’s Ballon d’Or gala after helping Spain to European Championship glory.
He scored 18 goals in 55 games across all competitions last season as Barcelona won La Liga and the Spanish Copa del Rey.
Yamal recently stated that he doesn’t dream of winning one Ballon d’Or but dreams of winning lots of them during an interview with Spanish journalist Jose Ramon de la Morena.
The Ballon d’Or is now voted for based on achievements during last season rather than over a calendar year as in the past.
Other notable nominees include Viktor Gyokeres, Erling Haaland, Harry Kane, Cole Palmer, and Liverpool’s Mohamed Salah and Virgil van Dijk.
Mbappe and Vinicius Junior are also on the list a year after Real Madrid boycotted the ceremony over the latter’s omission.
The Ballon d’Or is voted for by a panel of journalists, one from each of the top 100 countries in the FIFA world rankings.
In the women’s category, Barcelona and Spain star Aitana Bonmati goes for a treble against a wide-open field.
Bonmati was named player of the tournament at the UEFA Women’s Euro in July despite Spain losing the final on penalties to England.
Her Barcelona also lost the Champions League final to Arsenal in May, potentially affecting her chances against teammate and two-time winner Alexia Putellas.
England’s European champions have multiple nominees including Lucy Bronze, goalkeeper Hannah Hampton, Alessio Russo, captain Leah Williamson, and Chloe Kelly who scored the decisive penalty in the final. – AFP