Real Madrid Set To Snub Ballon d’Or Awards Again

Real Madrid will once again snub the 2025 Ballon d’Or awards scheduled to hold on Monday, September 22.

The ongoing feud with the competition’s organisers remains unresolved after Vinicius Jr was reportedly ‘robbed’ of the award last year.

The Real star finished second after netting 24 goals in 39 games during the 2023/24 season and scoring the winner at Wembley in their 2-0 Champions League final victory over Borussia Dortmund. Club chiefs have agreed on this decision, marking the second time they will forgo the ceremony.

A report by French outlet L’Equipe indicates that tensions between Real and the Ballon d’Or committee persist. The feud began when Vinicius was widely expected to win the award last season, but reports emerged that Manchester City star Rodri was instead going to claim it. This led Real Madrid’s delegation to skip the event in Paris and initiate a formal protest against the committee.

This protest will continue into this season’s awards, scheduled for Monday, 22 September in Paris, with Real’s officials unlikely to attend. This includes club officials and players, despite attempts at reconciliation by FIFA, who sought to resolve the dispute. Real Madrid is maintaining its formal protest, questioning the scoring process and UEFA’s involvement.

Indeed, a report by Marca (via the Daily Mail) states that Ballon d’Or chiefs travelled to Spain to address the snub, with tense discussions held with the La Liga giants in Madrid over recent months, ultimately ending without an agreement that would see Real return to the awards.

Relations between the two parties have rarely been strained, with Real adhering to their belief that they have experienced a ‘historic robbery’. Vinicius, Kylian Mbappe, and Jude Bellingham have been nominated for the prestigious award, but it is believed that the accolade will go to either Ousmane Dembele or teenage sensation Lamine Yamal. The last Real Madrid player to win the Ballon d’Or was Karim Benzema in 2022, and they have a total of 12 wins, tied with Barcelona, with Cristiano Ronaldo, Luka Modric, Alfredo Di Stefano, and Ronaldo Nazario being previous recipients.