Ousmane Dembele was named winner of the Ballon d’Or on Monday night, with the Frenchman recognised as football’s finest in 2025.
Dembele won the vote after an unforgettable season at Paris Saint-Germain, where he top-scored during the club’s historic quadruple campaign. The 28-year-old – who had never previously been nominated for the award – beat Lamine Yamal to the prize.
Ousmane Dembélé got emotional and brought his mom on stage after winning the Ballon d’Or 🥺 pic.twitter.com/C3DWNYNf7l
— B/R Football (@brfootball) September 22, 2025
Yamal, at just 18, could have become the youngest-ever winner and first teenager to win the accolade.
Paris Saint-Germain’s all-conquering team dominated the vote with five players, including the now-departed Gianluigi Donnarumma, inside the top 10.
Mohamed Salah was the highest-ranked Premier League player with the Liverpool winger fourth. Salah secured a top-four finish after a 2024/25 campaign that saw the Egyptian lead Europe’s top-five leagues for goals and assists.
Cole Palmer, inspirational in Chelsea’s Europa Conference League and FIFA Club World Cup wins, was the highest English player in the vote at eighth.
Ballon d’Or 2025 rankings in full:
- 30th: Michael Olise
- 29th: Florian Wirtz
- 28th: Virgil van Dijk
- 27th: Declan Rice
- 26th: Erling Haaland
- 25th: Denzel Dumfries
- 24th: Fabian Ruiz
- 23rd: Jude Bellingham
- 22nd: Alexis Mac Allister
- 21st: Serhou Guirassy
- 20th: Lautaro Martinez
- 19th: Joao Neves
- 18th: Scott McTominay
- 17th: Robert Lewandowski
- 16th: Vinicius Jr
- 15th: Viktor Gyokeres
- 14th: Desire Doue
- 13th: Harry Kane
- 12th: Khvicha Kvaratskhelia
- 11th: Pedri
- 10th: Nuno Mendes
- 9th: Gianluigi Donnarumma
- 8th: Cole Palmer
- 7th: Kylian Mbappe
- 6th: Achraf Hakimi
- 5th: Raphinha
- 4th: Mohamed Salah
- 3rd: Vitinha
- 2nd: Lamine Yamal
- 1st: Ousmane Dembele
Read – The youngest Ballon d’Or winners in history
See more – FM26: Football Manager 26 release date confirmed
