Rodri, Vinicius and Bellingham the favorites for Ballon d'Or
This time those who are expected to duel for the noblest and greatest individual prize in the world is the Brazilian, Vinicius. England's Jude Bellingham, Spain's Rodri
Years pass, whether we like it or not. And of course this happens in football as well as in life. Thus, for the first time since 2003, neither the Portuguese, Cristiano Ronaldo, nor the Argentine, Lionel Messi, have been included among the candidates for the men's Ballon d'Or award, which will be given on October 28 in a ceremony that will be held at the Théâtre Chatelet in Paris. Here I must emphasize that I have been one of the judges of this top prize since 1988 and I am particularly honored by this assignment as a correspondent for France Football.
This time those who are expected to duel for the noblest and greatest individual prize in the world is the Brazilian, Vinicius. England's Jude Bellingham, Spain's Rodri maybe the youngster Yamal, but he will probably have more hopes of winning the "Raymond Copa" prize awarded to the best footballer under the age of 21, in memory of the first French footballer the who won the Ballon d'Or.
They're all here!
— Ballon d'Or (@ballondor) September 4, 2024
But... who should win it? #ballondor pic.twitter.com/SrkHBrJtuI
Portugal's Cristiano Ronaldo, who won the award five times, also failed to receive a nomination last year, while Lionel Messi, who won for a record 8th time in 2023 and has been nominated 16 times, lost out despite Argentina winning the this year's Copa America, held in the United States.
Euro 2024 winners Spain have 6 candidates, including 17-year-old Barcelona winger Lamine Yamal, along with Nico Williams, Alejandro Grimaldo, Dani Olmo, Rodri and Dani Carvajal who also won the Champions League with Real Madrid.
Real have a total of 7 footballers in the pipeline, including Kylian Mbappe who recently joined their force from Paris Saint-Germain. There are still the Englishman Bellingham from the Queen of Europe and of course the Brazilian winger, Vinicius Junior among the other candidates of the Spanish club, who are among the favorites...
The England national team, second behind Spain's counterpart at Euro 2024, has 5 other candidates besides Bellingham: Harry Kane, Bukayo Saka, Declan Rice, Cole Palmer and Phil Foden.
To women
Of course, we must not forget that there is (and rightfully so) a prize for women, the Ballon d'Or. Champions League winners Barcelona have 6 candidates in total, including last year's winner Aitana Bonmati and two-time winner Alexia Putellas.
Finally, this year the administration of the authoritative and prestigious French sports magazine France Football will collaborate (for the first time) with UEFA....
Manos Staramopoulos
Journalist and Analyst of International Football and Affairs
Chief Editor English Zone of Discoveryfootball.com
Athens (Greece)
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