Paris Saint-Germain star Ousmane Dembele is tipped to hold off Barcelona's Lamine Yamal and win the men's Ballon d'Or on Monday.
The elite of world football will gather at the Theatre du Chatelet in central Paris to discover who will be the latest winner of an award dominated for so long by Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo.
Those two 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 last season was marred by injury, Dembele has emerged as the favourite from a list of nominees dominated by PSG.
Nine members of the team that won the Champions League, demolishing Inter Milan 5-0 in the final, feature among the 30 nominees.
But Dembele stands out after a magnificent season in which he filled the void left in Paris by the departed Kylian Mbappe, scoring 35 goals.
That contribution helped PSG to also complete a domestic clean sweep and reach the final of the Club World Cup.
“It is nice after what was a wonderful season with PSG,” Dembele told Le Monde when asked what it meant to be a leading contender for the prize.
“I think it's true that I am one of the favourites, but we will see what happens,” he said of a prize he described as “the individual holy grail”.
Yamal, still only 18, stands out among the other nominees having emerged as a superstar on the wing at Barcelona, where he is seen as the successor to Messi.
He won the Kopa Trophy for the best player aged under 21 at last year's gala, fresh from having helped Spain to European Championship glory.
He scored 18 goals in 55 games in all competitions last season as Barcelona won La Liga and the Spanish Copa del Rey, but they lost in the Champions League semi-finals to Inter.
“I don't dream of winning one Ballon d'Or, I dream of winning lots,” Yamal said in an interview with Spanish journalist Jose Ramon de la Morena.
Other notable nominees include Viktor Gyokeres, Erling Haaland, Harry Kane, Cole Palmer, and the key duo from Liverpool's 2024-2025 Premier League triumph, Mohamed Salah and Virgil van Dijk.
Mbappe and Vinicius Junior are on the list too, a year after Real Madrid boycotted the ceremony, outraged that the latter had been overlooked for the prize.
What is the Ballon d'Or?
The accolade is generally regarded as a way to crown the best player in the world, and is therefore the highest individual honour a footballer can achieve.
In what is now a joint partnership between Uefa, France Football and L'Equipe, the 2025 Ballon d'Or awards will honour last season's best players, coaches and clubs, in addition to the top scorer, goalkeeper, young player and humanitarian.
Presented annually by France Football since 1956, the Ballon d'Or started as a way to reward the world's best male player. It has expanded over the years and has become more like football's answer to the Oscars with female players, coaches and teams all now part of the extravaganza.
It was first won in 1956 by the Englishman Stanley Matthews, who edged out the Real Madrid legend Alfredo Di Stefano, who would claim it the following year.
Messi has won it the most times with eight at home in his trophy cabinet, ahead of his great rival Ronaldo who has five.
The award is now based on the results of last season instead of the calendar year. This is the period from August 1, 2024, to July 31, 2025.
How is the Ballon d'Or decided?
Although the event is now a joint effort, France Football, the originators of the Ballon d'Or, have retained the voting system and it is decided as follows:
The award is based on three main criteria: 1 Individual performances, decisive and impressive character; 2 Team performances and achievements; 3 Class and fair play.
The decision is made by an international jury of journalists, with one representative per country – from the top 100 in the latest Fifa rankings for men and the top 50 for women.
Each juror selects 10 players in descending order of merit from a list of 30 established by the editorial staff of France Football and L'Equipe.
The Ballon d'Or is awarded to the player with the highest number of points. In the case of a tie, the players are separated by the number of first-place votes. If the tie remains, they are separated by the number of second-place votes, then by the number of third-place votes and so on.
When is the 2025 Ballon d'Or ceremony?
The 69th edition of the awards will take place on Monday, September 22, at the Theatre du Chatelet in Paris. The ceremony will begin at 8pm local time (10pm UAE).
Who is nominated for the Ballon d'Or?
Men: Jude Bellingham, Ousmane Dembele, Gianluigi Donnarumma, Desire Doue, Denzel Dumfries, Serhou Guirassy, Viktor Gyokeres, Erling Haaland, Achraf Hakimi, Harry Kane, Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, Robert Lewandowski, Alexis Mac Allister, Lautaro Martinez, Kylian Mbappe, Scott McTominay, Nuno Mendes, Joao Neves, Michael Olise, Cole Palmer, Pedri, Raphinha, Declan Rice, Fabian Ruiz, Mohamed Salah, Virgil van Dijk, Vinicius Jr, Vitinha, Florian Wirtz, Lamine Yamal
Women: Sandy Baltimore, Barbra Banda, Aitana Bonmati, Lucy Bronze, Klara Buehl, Mariona Caldentey, Sofia Cantore, Steph Catley, Temwa Chawinga, Melchie Dumornay, Emily Fox, Cristiana Girelli, Esther Gonzalez, Caroline Graham Hansen, Hannah Hampton, Pernille Harder, Patri Guijarro, Amanda Gutierres, Lindsey Heaps, Chloe Kelly, Frida Leonhardsen-Maanum, Marta, Clara Mateo, Ewa Pajor, Claudia Pina, Alexia Putellas, Alessia Russo, Johanna Rytting Kaneryd, Caroline Weir, Leah Williamson
Men's coach of the year: Antonio Conte, Luis Enrique, Hansi Flick, Enzo Maresca, Arne Slot
Women's coach of the year: Sonia Bompastor, Arthur Elias, Justine Madugu, Renee Slegers, Sarina Wiegman
Men's club of the year: Barcelona, Botafogo, Chelsea, Liverpool, Paris Saint-Germain
Women's club of the year: Arsenal, Barcelona, Chelsea, OL Lyonnes, Orlando Pride
