In the next three months it will be known who has won the 2025 Ballon d'Or – and several Barcelona players are contrary. Lamina Yamal, Pedri, Raphinha and Robert Lewandowski have been nominated on the part of Hansi Flick, although they will have a stiff competition – in particular from a former teammate in Ousmane Dembele.
Barcelona won a domestic treble last season, when they took La Liga, the Copa del Rey and Spanish Super Cup in Flick's debut campaign home. However, the success of the Champions League of Paris Saint-Germain means that their players have an advantage in the race to claim the top individual prize in men's football.
Nevertheless, Joan Laporta, President Joan Laporta of Barcelona, made it clear that one of his players should only be the winner of the Ballon d'Or Award 2025 – and he has chosen Lamine Yamal as his favorite.
“The balloon d'Or has to go to a Barcelona player. Lamine is a great player and he shows it in every game. And what a balloon d'Or winner does, it is showing in training. Hopefully Barça will win everything at the Gala.”
Lamine Yamal is generally considered a leading candidate to win his first balloon d'Or in the tender age of 18, with him and Dembele expected to finish the top two. Raphinha and Pedri would not be far behind, given their impressive exploits during the 2024-25 season. In the meantime, Lewandowski is probably further in the pecking order, despite the scoring of 42 times in 52 performances for Barcelona.
The Ballon d'Or race is very close, with other PSG stars in Vitinha and Achraf Hakimi also contrary -just like Liverpool's Mohamed Salah. Barcelona has a chance for their first prize since Lionel Messi in 2019, but it will not be as easy as Laporta hopes.