Ballon d'Or 2025 nominees revealed in full (original) (raw)

Ballon d'Or 2025 nominees

Lionel Messi holds the Ballon d'Or (Image credit: David Ramos/Getty Images)

The Ballon d'Or 2025 nominees are in, with the 69th annual ceremony set for September 22 at the Theatre du Chatelet, in Paris, France.

Favourites for the award this year's trophy include the likes of Ousmane Dembele, Desire Doue and Gianluigi Donnarumma of Champions League-winning Paris Saint-Germain, while Mohamed Salah and Raphinha have are also expected high in the voting after spectacular individual seasons.

Last time, Manchester City star Rodri triumphed to become the third Spaniard to be honoured with the trophy, winning the 2024 Ballon d'Or and causing the mother of all meltdowns from Real Madrid, who fully expected this one to be Vinicius Jr's.

Journalists from France Football and fellow French publication L'Equipe – along with a select number of former players – have banded together to produce a combined list of 30 official nominees, based on players' performances over last season.

Following on from that longlist, one football journalist from each of FIFA's 100 top-ranked nations will be invited to cast votes for their top 10 players, awarding 15 points to the top pick, then 12, 10, eight, seven, five, four, three, two, and eventually one point down to their 10th-placed player.

Of course, it's not just about men's Ballon d'Or award, which has a long list of illustrious recipients: France Football also hand out other awards on the night, including Ballon d'Or Feminin for the best women's player in the world, The Kopa Trophy for the best young player under 21, The Gerd Muller Trophy for the best striker in the world right now, The Yashin Trophy given to the best goalkeeper in the world right now and The Socrates Award for one footballer's contribution to society as individual prizes.

In a new turn for the awards, there's the Johan Cruyff Trophy – renamed from Coach of the Year (also available for men's and women's) – and Club of the Year (also men's and women's), in a glitzy ceremony. So who's in the running this time around?

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Ballon d'Or 2025 nominees

Rodri claimed the 2024 Ballon d'Or prize back in October

Rodri claimed the 2024 Ballon d'Or prize (Image credit: Getty Images)

The Ballon d'Or 2025 nominees in full

Ballon d'Or Feminin 2025 nominees

Barcelona's Spanish midfielder Aitana Bonmati receives the Woman Ballon d'Or award during the 2024 Ballon d'Or France Football award ceremony at the Theatre du Chatelet in Paris on October 28, 2024.

Aitana Bonmati has won the Ballon d'Or two seasons in a row (Image credit: FRANCK FIFE/AFP via Getty Images)

The Ballon d'Or Feminin 2025 nominees in full

Kopa Trophy 2025 nominees

The Kopa Trophy 2025 nominees in full

Myles Lewis-Skelly of Arsenal during the Premier League match between Arsenal FC and Newcastle United FC at Emirates Stadium on May 18, 2025 in London, England.

Myles Lewis-Skelly is up for the Kopa Trophy (Image credit: Jacques Feeney/Offside/Offside via Getty Images)

Men's

Women's

Yashin Trophy 2025 nominees

The Yashin Trophy 2025 nominees in full

Aston Villa goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez, April 2025

Emiliano Martinez has won the Yashin Trophy before (Image credit: Alamy)

Men's

Women's

Gerd Muller Trophy 2025 nominees

Harry Kane of Bayern is announced to the crowd ahead of the FIFA Club World Cup 2025 group C match between FC Bayern München and Auckland City FC at TQL Stadium on June 15, 2025 in Cincinnati, Ohio.

Harry Kane won the Gerd Muller Trophy last year (Image credit: Michael Regan - FIFA/FIFA via Getty Images)

Who is nominated for the Gerd Muller Trophy?

There is no shortlist for the Gerd Muller Trophy, with the award instead just going to the player with the most goals in Europe, for club and country.

Last year, Harry Kane and Kylian Mbappe shared the award.

The Socrates Award 2025 nominees

Jennifer Hermoso #10 of Team Spain celebrates scoring her team's first goal during the Women's Quarterfinal match between Spain and Colombia during the Olympic Games Paris 2024 at Stade de Lyon on August 03, 2024 in Lyon, France.

Jennifer Hermoso won the Socrates Award last year (Image credit: Getty Images)

Who is nominated for the Socrates Award?

There is no nominee list for the Socrates Award: instead the trophy is awarded for the best humanitarian work by a footballer worldwide.

The trophy was won by Jenni Hermoso last year.

Johan Cruyff Trophy 2025 nominees

The Johan Cruyff Trophy 2025 nominees in full

Head coach Sarina Wiegman of England celebrates the victory with the trophy after the UEFA Women's EURO 2025 Final match between England and Spain at St. Jakob-Park on July 27, 2025 in Basel, Switzerland.

Sarina Wiegman is in the running for the coach accolade (Image credit: Getty Images)

Men's

Women's

Club of the Year 2025 nominees

The Club of the Year 2025 nominees in full

PSG captain Marquinhos lifts the Champions League trophy aloft

PSG are up for Club of the Year (Image credit: Getty Images)

Men's

Women's

Mark White is the Digital Content Editor at FourFourTwo. During his time on the brand, Mark has written three cover features on Mikel Arteta, Martin Odegaard and the Invincibles, and has written pieces on subjects ranging from Sir Bobby Robson’s time at Barcelona to the career of Robinho. An encyclopedia of football trivia and collector of shirts, he first joined the team back in 2020 as a staff writer.