Sport
Marcelo Says Cristiano Ronaldo Deserves to Win the 2025 Ballon d’Or
Real Madrid icon Marcelo has made his pick for the 2025 Ballon d’Or, and he didn’t hesitate to name his former teammate Cristiano Ronaldo. After featuring in a 3-3 charity match between Real Madrid legends and Borussia Dortmund legends on Saturday, Marcelo was asked who he believes deserves the prestigious award. His answer was short and clear: Cristiano Ronaldo.
The friendly saw former stars like Julio Baptista, Toni Kroos, and Raul find the back of the net for Madrid. But off the pitch, the talk turned to football’s biggest individual prize. Ronaldo, now plying his trade in Saudi Arabia, finished last season as the top scorer in the league with 25 goals. He also led Portugal to the final of the Nations League, where they are set to take on Spain.
Despite his achievements, Ronaldo isn’t considered a frontrunner for this year’s Ballon d’Or. Marcelo knows this but made his opinion known anyway. Current favourites for the award include Barcelona’s rising star Lamine Yamal, PSG winger Ousmane Dembele, Real Madrid’s new signing Kylian Mbappe, and Liverpool’s Mohamed Salah.
Interestingly, Ronaldo himself recently said the Ballon d’Or should go to someone from the Champions League-winning team, adding another layer to the ongoing debate.
Former footballer Thierry Henry has shared his thoughts on Arsenal’s match following their loss to Atlético Madrid on October 13.
Speaking during a brief interview on CBS Sports, Henry criticised the practice of players or coaches expressing certain opinions through the media instead of addressing issues directly within the dressing room.
“I’m not a coach anymore, but I always say, whoever speaks like that, out. Keep that in the dressing room, it’s as simple as that,” Henry said on CBS Sports.
“That is the only way it can work. You have to say those things to a person’s face… going through the press, I am not really a fan of that.”
Paris Saint-Germain manager Luis Enrique has shared his thoughts on the 2026 Ballon d’Or award, revealing that he hopes the winner will come from his team.
The manager spoke about how hard his players have worked and expressed his belief that they deserve the recognition.
“What I hope is that we win this trophy. We have players who deserve it.”
“Last year, we were the best team. We showed that it wasn’t just Ousmane Dembélé who deserved it.”
French football pundit Walid Acherchour has named Lamine Yamal as his pick to win the 2026 Ballon d’Or, sparking reactions among football fans.
Acherchour’s choice came as a surprise to some fans, who expected him to support fellow Frenchman Kylian Mbappé instead.
Speaking about his prediction, Acherchour expressed confidence in Yamal’s chances of winning the prestigious individual award.
“For me, Lamine Yamal, he is going to get it [2026 Ballon d’Or]. For me, there’s no doubt anymore,” Acherchour said, as quoted by Actu Foot. That start to the season shows that in fact, he was injured during the World Cup. He was the best player in La Liga, and he won the World Cup.
“Even if, for me, in fact, he doesn’t have the Ballon d’Or unanimously because his World Cup was average, even being average, he won it with Spain. He won La Liga with Barça.”
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