What you need to know about Ousmane Dembélé’s Ballon d’Or victory

Paris Saint-Germain forward Ousmane Dembélé has been crowned the winner of the 2025 Ballon d’Or, beating Barcelona’s teenage sensation Lamine Yamal, who finished in second place.

The victory makes Dembélé the sixth French player in history to claim the prestigious award, joining an elite list that includes Raymond Kopa (1958), Michel Platini (1983, 1984, 1985), Jean-Pierre Papin (1991), Zinedine Zidane (1998), and Karim Benzema (2022).

A Dominant Voting Outcome

France Football, the award’s organisers, revealed the complete list of journalistic votes that showed a clear margin of victory for Dembélé. Out of 100 jurors—one journalist representing each of the top 100 FIFA-ranked countries—73 selected Dembélé among their top choices.

In contrast, 17-year-old Lamine Yamal received just 11 mentions in the top 10, underlining the wide gap between the two finalists. Other notable players who appeared in jurors’ top 10 lists included Vitinha (6 times), Mohamed Salah (4), Achraf Hakimi (3), and Kylian Mbappé (1). Surprisingly, Khvicha Kvaratskhelia of Georgia and Scott McTominay of Scotland each received one vote, representing unique national preferences rather than broad consensus.

Ballon d’Or Selection Criteria

The Men’s Ballon d’Or is awarded annually by an international jury of football journalists, with one representative per country among the top 100 in FIFA’s world rankings.

The voting process is based on three key criteria, ranked in order of importance:

1. Individual performance – decisiveness, consistency, and overall impact.
2. Team performance and achievements – trophies, contribution to collective success.
3. Class and fair play – respect, sportsmanship, and leadership on and off the pitch.

Each journalist submits a list of ten players, awarding them points on a descending scale: 15 for first place, 12 for second, 10 for third, followed by 8, 7, 5, 4, 3, 2, and 1. The player with the highest total points is declared the winner. In the event of a tie, the number of first-place votes becomes the tiebreaker, followed by second-place and third-place votes if necessary.

A Career-Defining Moment

For Dembélé, this triumph represents not only individual glory but also recognition of his resurgence at Paris Saint-Germain, where he has emerged as a leader in both domestic and European competitions. His decisive performances and creativity have set him apart, sealing his place in football history as France’s newest Ballon d’Or winner.