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DEMBELE SET TO GET NOD
The Straits Times
|September 22, 2025
Ballon d’Or beckons for forward after PSG’s great season, with Yamal closest contender
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Paris Saint-Germain star Ousmane Dembele is tipped to hold off Barcelona sensation Lamine Yamal and win the men’s Ballon d’Or on Sept 22, while Aitana Bonmati’s chances of claiming a third straight women’s prize hang in the balance.
The cream of world football will gather at the Theatre du Chatelet in central Paris to discover who will be the latest winners of an award dominated for so long by Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo.
The Argentinian and the Portuguese won the Ballon d’Or 13 times between them from 2008 to 2023, with last year finally marking the end of an era when the award went to Manchester City midfielder Rodri after he captained Spain to Euro 2024 glory.
With Rodri not a contender to retain the most prestigious individual prize in football after his season was marred by injury, Dembele has emerged as the favourite from a list of nominees dominated by PSG.
Nine members of the PSG team who won the Champions League, demolishing Inter Milan 5-0 in the final, feature among the 30 nominees.
This story is from the September 22, 2025 edition of The Straits Times.
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