Real Madrid president Florentino Perez has defended the club's decision to boycott the Ballon d'Or.
Los Blancos protested after learning that Vinicius Jr. had missed out on the top prize for Manchester City star Rodri. The club's entourage was due to take a private plane to the event in Paris on Monday afternoon but stopped before boarding after hearing the Brazilian forward had missed.
As such, players such as boss Carlo Ancelotti, England star Jude Bellingham – who finished third overall – and all club officials opted to resign. Ironically, it came at a time when Madrid were being linked with Rodri as a potential transfer target in the Spanish media, despite his current injury problems.
Now Perez was asked at the club's General Meeting to explain his decision. He praised Rodri as a “great footballer”, adding “we love him”, but then lashed out at the voting system, insisting this was why they were boycotting the ceremony.
“They changed the voting system,” Perez said. “It is surprising that, given football, there are countries where journalists with less than a million inhabitants now have a voice. There are journalists no one knows who voted this year. Without the votes of journalists from countries such as Uganda, Namibia, Albania and Finland, Vinicius would have won this Ballon d'Or.
“The system must change and it must be recognized people who risk their prestige with these votes. For all these reasons we did not attend the Ballon d'Or gala.”
Perez also spoke out about the controversial European Super League he continues to push, while criticizing the new Champions League format, stating: “No one understands it.”
Following court rulings against UEFA and FIFA over the proposal, which quickly hit the buffers when it was first announced in April 2021, Perez added: “Today I am more optimistic than ever. Breaking the football monopoly took a Herculean effort, with pressure that would have brought down anyone, but not us.
“We can be proud. It is now up to us to put the court's ruling into practice. The format will be 100 percent meritocratic. The ruling of the European Court has given us our freedom back.”
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