The Ballon d’Or 2025 nominees are in, with the 69th annual ceremony set for September 22 at the Theatre du Chatelet, in Paris, France.
Favourites for the award this year’s trophy include the likes of Ousmane Dembele, Desire Doue and Gianluigi Donnarumma of Champions League-winning Paris Saint-Germain, while Mohamed Salah and Raphinha have are also expected high in the voting after spectacular individual seasons.
Last time, Manchester City star triumphed to become the third Spaniard to be honoured with the trophy, winning the 2024 Ballon d’Or and causing the mother of all meltdowns from Real Madrid, who fully expected this one to be Vinicius Jr’s.
Journalists from France Football and fellow French publication L’Equipe – along with a select number of former players – have banded together to produce a combined list of 30 official nominees, based on players’ performances over last season.
Following on from that longlist, one football journalist from each of FIFA’s 100 top-ranked nations will be invited to cast votes for their top 10 players, awarding 15 points to the top pick, then 12, 10, eight, seven, five, four, three, two, and eventually one point down to their 10th-placed player.
Of course, it’s not just about men’s Ballon d’Or award, which has a long list of illustrious recipients: France Football also hand out other awards on the night, including Ballon d’Or Feminin for the best women’s player in the world, The Kopa Trophy for the best young player under 21, The Gerd Muller Trophy for the best striker in the world right now, The Yashin Trophy is given to the best goalkeeper in the world right now and The Socrates Award for one footballer’s contribution to society as individual prizes.
In a new turn for the awards, there’s the Johan Cruyff Trophy – renamed from Coach of the Year (also available for men’s and women’s) – and Club of the Year (also men’s and women’s), in a glitzy ceremony. So who’s in the running this time around?
The Ballon d’Or 2025 nominees in full
- Ousmane Dembele (Paris-Saint-Germain, France)
- Gianluigi Donnarumma (Paris-Saint-Germain, Italy)
- Jude Bellingham (Real Madrid, England)
- Desire Doue (Paris-Saint-Germain, France)
- Denzel Dumfries (Inter Milan, Netherlands)
- Serhou Guirassy (Borussia Dortmund, Guinea)
- Erling Haaland (Manchester City, Norway)
- Viktor Gyokeres (Arsenal, Sweden)
- Achraf Hakimi (Paris Saint-Germain, Morocco)
- Harry Kane (Bayern Munich, England)
- Khvicha Kvaratskhelia (Paris Saint-Germain, Georgia)
- Robert Lewandowski (Barcelona, Poland)
- Alexis Mac Allister (Liverpool, Argentina)
- Lautaro Martinez (Inter Milan, Argentina)
- Scott McTominay (Napoli, Scotland)
- Kylian Mbappe (Real Madrid, France)
- Nuno Mendes (Paris Saint-Germain, Portugal)
- Joao Neves (Paris Saint-Germain, Portugal)
- Pedri (Barcelona, Spain)
- Cole Palmer (Chelsea, England)
- Michael Olise (Bayern Munich, France)
- Raphinha (Barcelona, Brazil)
- Declan Rice (Arsenal, England)
- Fabian Ruiz (Paris Saint-Germain, Spain)
- Virgil van Dijk (Liverpool, Netherlands)
- Vinicius Jr (Real Madrid, Brazil)
- Mohamed Salah (Liverpool, Egypt)
- Florian Wirtz (Liverpool, Germany)
- Vitinha (Paris Saint-Germain, Portugal)
- Lamine Yamal (Barcelona, Spain)
The Ballon d’Or Feminin 2025 nominees in full
- Lucy Bronze (Chelsea, England)
- Barbra Banda (Orlando Pride, Zambia)
- Aitana Bonmati (Barcelona, Spain)
- Sandy Baltimore (Chelsea, France)
- Mariona Caldentey (Arsenal, Spain)
- Klara Buhl (Bayern Munich, Germany)
- Sofia Cantore (Washington Spirit, Italy)
- Steph Catley (Arsenal, Australia)
- Melchie Dumornay (Lyon, Haiti)
- Temwa Chawinga (Kansas City Current, Malawi)
- Emily Fox (Arsenal, USA)
- Cristiana Girelli (Juventus, Italy)
- Esther Gonzalez (Gotham, Spain)
- Caroline Graham Hansen (Barcelona, Norway)
- Patri Guijarro (Barcelona, Spain)
- Amanda Gutierres (Palmeiras, Brazil)
- Hannah Hampton (Chelsea, England)
- Pernille Harder (Bayern Munich, Denmark)
- Lindsey Heaps (Lyon, USA)
- Chloe Kelly (Arsenal, England)
- Marta (Orlando Pride, Brazil)
- Frida Leonhardsen Maanum (Arsenal, Norway)
- Ewa Pajor (Barcelona, Poland)
- Clara Mateo (Paris FC, France)
- Alessia Russo (Arsenal, England)
- Claudia Pina (Barcelona, Spain)
- Alexia Putellas (Barcelona, Spain)
- Johanna Rytting Kaneryd (Chelsea, Sweden)
- Caroline Weir (Real Madrid, Scotland)
- Leah Williamson (Arsenal, England)
The Kopa Trophy 2025 nominees in full
Men’s
- Pau Cubarsi (Barcelona, Spain)
- Ayyoub Bouaddi (Lille, France)
- Desire Doue (Paris Saint-Germain, France)
- Estevao Willian (Chelsea, Brazil)
- Dean Huijsen (Real Madrid, Spain)
- Myles Lewis-Skelly (Arsenal, England)
- Rodrigo Mora (Porto, Portugal)
- Joao Neves (Paris Saint-Germain, Portugal)
- Lamine Yamal (Barcelona, Spain)
- Kenan Yildiz (Juventus, Turkey)
Women’s
- Michelle Agyemang (Arsenal, England)
- Linda Caicedo (Real Madrid, Colombia)
- Wieke Kaptein (Chelsea, Netherlands)
- Claudia Martinez Ovando (Club Olimpia, Paraguay)
- Vicky Lopez (Barcelona, Spain)
The Yashin Trophy 2025 nominees in full
Men’s
- Alisson Becker (Liverpool, Brazil)
- Yassine Bounou (Al-Hilal, Morocco)
- Lucas Chevalier (Lille, France)
- Thibaut Courtois (Real Madrid, Belgium)
- Gianluigi Donnarumma (Paris Saint-Germain, Italy)
- Emiliano Martinez (Aston Villa, Argentina)
- Jan Oblak (Atletico Madrid, Slovenia)
- David Raya (Arsenal, Spain)
- Matz Sels (Nottingham Forest, Belgium)
- Yann Sommer (Inter Milan, Switzerland)
Women’s
- Ann-Katrin Berger (Gotham FC, Germany)
- Cata Coll (Barcelona, Spain)
- Hannah Hampton (Chelsea, England)
- Chiamaka Nnadozie (Brighton, Nigeria)
- Daphne van Domselaar (Arsenal, Netherlands)
Gerd Muller Trophy 2025 nominees
Who is nominated for the Gerd Muller Trophy?
There is no shortlist for the Gerd Muller Trophy, with the award instead just going to the player with the most goals in Europe, for club and country.
Last year, Harry Kane and Kylian Mbappe shared the award.
The Socrates Award 2025 nominees
Who is nominated for the Socrates Award?
There is no nominee list for the Socrates Award: instead the trophy is awarded for the best humanitarian work by a footballer worldwide.
The trophy was won by Jenni Hermoso last year.
Johan Cruyff Trophy 2025 nominees
The Johan Cruyff Trophy 2025 nominees in full
Men’s
- Antonio Conte (Napoli)
- Luis Enrique (Paris Saint-Germain)
- Hansi Flick (Barcelona)
- Enzo Maresca (Chelsea)
- Arne Slot (Liverpool)
Women’s
- Sonia Bompastor (Chelsea)
- Arthur Elias (Brazil)
- Justine Madugu (Nigeria)
- Renee Slegers (Arsenal)
- Sarina Wiegman (England)
Club of the Year 2025 nominees
The Club of the Year 2025 nominees in full
Men’s
- Barcelona (Spain)
- Botafogo (Brazil)
- Chelsea (England)
- Liverpool (England)
- Paris Saint-Germain (France)
Women’s
- Arsenal (England)
- Barcelona (Spain)
- Chelsea (England)
- OL Lyonnes (France)
- Orlando Pride (United States)
SOURCE: fourtwofour
PHOTO CREDIT: gettyimages-1244039852-612×612-1
