Ousmane Dembélé Wins 2025 Ballon d'Or

Ousmane Dembélé was crowned the 2025 Ballon d'Or at the Théâtre du Châtelet in Paris, narrowly edging Barcelona teenager Lamine Yamal for football’s top individual prize. The award capped Dembélé’s 2024–25 season in which he scored 35 goals, contributed double‑digit assists and played a starring role as Paris Saint‑Germain won the Champions League and a domestic double (Ligue 1 and the French Cup). An emotional Dembélé thanked his family, former club Barcelona, Lionel Messi and coach Luis Enrique in a tearful acceptance speech, calling the trophy a collective achievement. Yamal finished second and retained the Kopa Trophy as the world’s best U21 player, and PSG collected multiple honors at the ceremony — including best male club — with teammate Vitinha third in the men’s voting. Gianluigi Donnarumma won the men’s Yashin Trophy and England goalkeeper Hannah Hampton took the women’s Yashin, while Aitana Bonmatí won a third straight Ballon d’Or Féminin. Commentators described the result as the fulfilment of Dembélé’s long‑promised potential and a sign of a post‑Messi/Ronaldo era in which sustained team success and consistency carried significant weight.