Real Madrid, convinced that its striker Vinicius, although favorite, will not be named Ballon d’Or on Monday evening, announced that it would boycott the ceremony planned at the Théâtre du Chatelet in Paris (from 8:45 p.m.).
“If the award criteria do not designate Vinicius as the winner, these same criteria should designate Carvajal as the winner. As this was not the case, it is obvious that the UEFA Golden Ball does not respect Real Madrid. And Real Madrid is not where it is not respected,” writes the Madrid club in a press release.
The organizers of the Ballon d’Or decided to innovate this year by keeping the identity of the winner secret until the end, to avoid any leaks to the press. In previous years, the winner was revealed a few days before the prize was awarded. All the nominees were thus invited to the ceremony organized this evening in Paris.
The absence of Real players and the club’s declaration therefore suggest that neither Vinicius nor Dani Carvajal nor Jude Bellingham, architects of the club’s European coronation, will win the trophy, leaving the way clear for Manchester City’s Spanish midfielder Rodri. Winner of Euro 2024 with La Roja, Rodri (28 years old) was named best player of the tournament by UEFA.
The Golden Ball is awarded after the vote of a jury of journalists representing the top 100 nations in the FIFA rankings.
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