France Football magazine, creator of the Ballon d’Or prize, revealed this Friday new details concerning the vote which awarded the title of best player in the world to midfielder Rodri. According to the publication, the Spaniard is only ahead of Vinicius Júnior by 41 points in the race for the trophy.
According to the magazine, 99 of the 100 jurors from FIFA’s main member countries – with the exception of Syria, which did not vote – took part in choosing the men’s Ballon d’Or. For the women’s category, 49 of the 50 main nations voted, except the representative of Costa Rica. France Football describes as “tight” the difference of 41 points between Rodri, crowned best player, and Vinicius Jr, second in the ranking.
In the voting process, the jurors establish their “top 10” candidates for the Ballon d’Or. The first on each voter’s list receives 15 points, the second 12, the third 10, and so on. Rodri thus totaled 1,170 points, compared to 1,129 for Vinicius Jr.
Vinicius more often in the top 10 than Rodri
During the voting, Vinicius Jr was excluded from the “top 10” of three jurors, while Rodri did not appear in the lists of five voters. In addition to Vinicius Jr and Rodri, Real Madrid’s Jude Bellingham, Dani Carvajal and Toni Kroos have also been cited as first choices, as have Kylian Mbappé, Erling Haaland, Lautaro Martinez and Ademola Lookman, each cited once.
Vinicius Junior, 24, was considered one of the favorites for the 2024 Ballon d’Or. However, the Brazilian player was beaten out by Manchester City player Rodri.
According to the Spanish newspaper AS, Real Madrid are analyzing the reasons that could have prevented the winger from winning the award. AS adds that this defeat could influence the future of Vinicius, who is feeling bad due to several elements.
Internal competition
“The first conclusion is probably that the votes for Vinicius were influenced by those received by his teammates Bellingham and Carvajal, particularly the Englishman. Some votes were taken from others, it is inevitable,” notes Marcos Ruiz in his column for AS. The journalist also explains that the Ballon d’Or defeat could complicate Vinicius Jr’s career.
“Beyond the initial disappointment, everything that happened could have consequences for the Brazilian star’s future at Real Madrid. The player begins to feel exhausted due to several circumstances. The first is linked to the awarding of the Ballon d’Or and the feeling of helplessness he feels while playing in La Liga. Vinicius has the impression that the referees, instead of protecting him, reprimand him when he draws attention to what he is experiencing on the pitch. Furthermore, the episodes of racism he endured in Spain, some very unpleasant, also weigh heavily on him.”
With Vinicius’ defeat, Brazil reaches 17 years without a Ballon d’Or winner. The last winner was Kaká in 2007, when he won the trophy with AC Milan. Despite this, Vinicius Jr obtained a place of honor: he ranked second according to France Football, a podium that Brazil had not reached since Neymar ranked third in 2015 and 2017.
Created in 1956, the Ballon d’Or has become the most prestigious trophy in international football. In 1990, FIFA introduced its own award to rival the Ballon d’Or. In 2010, a collaboration was established with France Footballll, and between 2010 and 2015, the Ballon d’Or was awarded as the official FIFA prize. This collaboration ended in 2016, when FIFA created its own award, The Best.
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