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If you thought the days of the Ballon d’Or generating headlines were over after Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo’s era of dominance came to an end, then think again. After one of the most closely-fought races for a number of years, Rodri came out on top in 2024, beating Vinicius Jr into second place as Real Madrid dramatically boycotted the ceremony in Paris in protest at their star player missing out.
Unfortunately for Rodri, he will be unable to defend his crown in 2025, with the Manchester City midfielder having suffered a season-ending knee injury in September. The door, then, is open for a whole host of players to succeed the Spain star, and the race for the Golden Ball is already well under way.
The 2024-25 season doesn’t have the same international tournaments as its two predecessors, and so the destination of the Ballon d’Or will be decided solely by club performances. That opens it up to all sorts of individuals who might not share the same success with their countries as others, while there is also the prospect of the new Club World Cup to factor into consideration.
So, who are the favourites for the most prestigious individual prize in world football? As always, GOAL will be here every step of the way to track the contenders and the pretenders with our Ballon d’Or Power Rankings – check out who is making the early running below…
Previous update: October 29. Players removed: Michael Olise, Pedri.
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Getty Images Sport15Christian Pulisic (AC Milan) ⬇️
In 2024-25: 10 goals, seven assists.
The outstanding player in Italy so far this season, Pulisic is beginning to look like the potentially world-class player many predicted he would become during his breakthrough years at Borussia Dortmund.
The biggest obstacle to him challenging for the Ballon d’Or is likely to be playing for AC Milan, who are lagging behind in both the Serie A and Champions League standings after making a poor start under new manager Paulo Fonseca. Pulisic is doing all he can to drag the Rossoneri back into contention, but he needs his team-mates to step up if he is to maintain any Golden Ball hopes.
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AFP14Omar Marmoush (Eintracht Frankfurt) 🆕
In 2024-25: 15 goals, 10 assists.
Mohamed Salah might not the only Egyptian on the 2025 Ballon d’Or shortlist, with Marmoush emerging as one of the most in-form forwards in Europe through the early weeks of the campaign after making a blistering start to the season at Eintracht Frankfurt.
Marmoush may need a January transfer to a Champions League to become a legitimate Golden Ball contender, though Eintracht have made a strong start in the Europa League, meaning European silverware might not be beyond the 25-year-old regardless.
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Getty Images Sport13Cole Palmer (Chelsea) ⬇️
In 2024-25: Seven goals, five assists.
Regarded by some as the best player in the Premier League right now, Palmer has picked up from where he left off last season by making a fast start to the campaign with what looks to be a revitalised Chelsea under Enzo Maresca.
After making it onto the Ballon d’Or shortlist in 2024, Palmer is well on track to do so again in 2025, but his lack of Champions League football may well hold him back from being among the true challengers come the end of the campaign.
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Getty Images12Bukayo Saka (Arsenal) ⬇️
In 2024-25: Four goals, seven assists.
As if it wasn’t already obvious, Saka’s importance to Arsenal was made clear in the early weeks of the campaign, as the Gunners’ forward line struggled to function while the winger sat a couple of games out with injury, only to make a scoring return when he was restored to the line-up against Liverpool.
Mikel Arteta’s side are playing catch-up after stuttering in the early weeks of the Premier League title race, but as they get back to full fitness among their key players, they should reach their best level at home and in the Champions League, led by their very own star boy.
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Getty Images Sport11Florian Wirtz (Bayer Leverkusen) ↔️
In 2024-25: 10 goals, five assists. Won DFL-Supercup.
Wirtz made his first Ballon d’Or shortlist in 2024, and he is likely to become a staple over the next decade or so as the 21-year-old builds on his breakout campaign. He has begun the current season in similar form to the way he ended the previous one, as he scored in each of Bayer Leverkusen’s first three Champions League games.
Xabi Alonso’s side, however, do not look the same proposition in the Bundesliga as they were in winning the title last term, so Wirtz may need to play even better to get himself in true Golden Ball contention.
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Getty Images Sport10Kylian Mbappe (Real Madrid) ⬇️
In 2024-25: Eight goals, two assists. Won UEFA Super Cup.
Mbappe may not have enjoyed the start to life at Real Madrid that he or the club’s fans might have wanted, but he is still scoring his fair share of goals and obviously has the ability to take his game to another level once he gets used to his new surroundings in the Spanish capital.
It’s no secret that Mbappe craves the Ballon d’Or given its standing in his home country – however, there is a concern that he might have joined the one club in world football where there is a more impactful player than even him right now.
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Getty Images Sport9Viktor Gyokeres (Sporting CP) 🆕
In 2024-25: 32 goals, eight assists.
An absolute revelation since arriving in Lisbon from Coventry City in the summer of 2023, it feels like Gyokeres’ hat-trick to down Manchester City in the Champions League was his true breakout moment, with the Sweden striker’s goal-scoring exploits now receiving the global headlines they deserve.
How Sporting CP fair now Ruben Amorim has left for Manchester United will likely be the determining factor in how high up the Ballon d’Or rankings Gyokeres eventually finishes – that is, unless he switches clubs in January himself…
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Getty Images Sport8Harry Kane (Bayern Munich) ⬇️
In 2024-25: 20 goals, nine assists.
Is this the year Kane finally ends the wait for the first trophy of his otherwise-storied career? Certainly, Bayern have made a fast start in the Bundesliga under Vincent Kompany, with Kane yet again showing his goal-scoring instincts remain at the highest level despite having turned 31 over the summer.
Rodri’s win highlighted that goals alone don’t necessarily win players Ballons d’Or anymore, but Kane certainly has the all-round game that should catch the voters’ eyes if he can lead the Bavarians to glory at home and on the continent in 2025.
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Getty Images Sport7Erling Haaland (Manchester City) ⬇️
In 2024-25: 22 goals, one assist.
Rodri became the first Ballon d’Or winner from the Premier League since 2008 when he picked up the Golden Ball in Paris on Monday, and if there is to be another recipient of the award from the English top flight in 12 months’ time, then Haaland is one of the most likely candidates right now.
With the likes of Kevin De Bruyne and Phil Foden enduring slow starts to the campaign, Haaland has had to lead from the front for Manchester City, and the incessant goal machine already looks nailed on for a third consecutive Golden Boot. Team silverware, however, looks less certain following City’s run of four straight defeats, and Haaland will need his team-mates to step up if he is to have any chance of claiming the ultimate individual honour.
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Getty Images Sport6Lamine Yamal (Barcelona) ⬇️
In 2024-25: Six goals, nine assists.
No player has won the Ballon d’Or before their 21st birthday in the almost-70 years of the award, but right now it would be a shock if Yamal didn’t break that record given he has another three seasons to get there. There is presently no greater talent in the game than the Barcelona teenager, who, as he is already showing in 2024-25, is only going to get better and better.
He’s being outscored by two of his team-mates in Catalunya, but plenty of La Liga watchers will tell you that the 17-year-old has been the most impressive player in Spain thus far this campaign. As such, the Kopa Trophy winner may well be back on stage in Paris in 12 months’ time holding an even bigger trophy.
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AFP5Jamal Musiala (Bayern Munich) ⬆️
In 2024-25: 11 goals, seven assists.
After leading Bayern to the Bundesliga title in 2023, Musiala – like many of his team-mates – endured a quieter season last time out. However, the attacking midfielder has carried his form from Euro 2024 into the new campaign and in recent weeks has taken his game to new levels.
Musiala obviously has to contend with having a goal machine like Kane taking plenty of the headlines around Bayern, but the creative midfielder is doing all he can to prove he is the main man at Allianz Arena with some eye-catching performances.
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Getty Images Sport4Vinicius Jr (Real Madrid) ⬇️
In 2024-25: 12 goals, seven assists. Won UEFA Super Cup.
Upon confirmation of his surprise second-placed finish in the 2024 Ballon d’Or, Vinicius swore that “the world wasn’t ready” for what is now likely to become his revenge tour. The Brazilian clearly felt that he should have been up on stage with the Golden Ball rather than Rodri, and he is ready to stake his claim yet again over the next 12 months.
Certainly, the Real Madrid winger has looked in electric form during the early weeks of the campaign, and there might not be a forward anywhere in world football who can match Vinicius at his best. He will, however, need his club as a whole to find some form in the second half of the season if he is to maintain a challenge, but Vini looks primed to prove himself worthy in 2025.
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Getty Images Sport3Raphinha (Barcelona) ⬆️
In 2024-25: 15 goals, 10 assists.
There is an argument to say that Raphinha has been the best of Barcelona’s electric front-three so far this season, and his raw goal and assist numbers certainly help back that up. However, it feels like the Brazilian is playing from behind as the least-heralded of the Blaugrana’s attacking trio, and thus will likely need to post other-worldly statistics to prove himself Ballon d’Or-worthy.
Saying that, there is no doubt that Raphinha is playing the best football of his career right now, and there is no reason to believe that he can’t keep that up and become a serious Golden Ball contender over the course of the campaign.
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AFP2Robert Lewandowski (Barcelona) ⬇️
In 2024-25: 20 goals, four assists.
After Lewandowski missed out on the Ballon d’Or shortlist in 2024, it seemed like the Pole’s long and thus far fruitless bid to pick up a Golden Ball was over. However, having been reunited with his former Bayern coach Hansi Flick at Barcelona, the 36-year-old has rolled back the years to become Europe’s most potent No.9 once again.
Age could yet catch up with the veteran in the coming months, and there are undeniably more thrilling to players to watch in his own team, never mind among Barca’s rivals, but Lewandowski has set himself up to be back in the Ballon d’Or reckoning with his fast start to the campaign.
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Getty Images Sport1Mohamed Salah (Liverpool) ⬆️
In 2024-25: 12 goals, 10 assists.
Salah is out of contract at Liverpool in the summer of 2025, and so if this does prove to be his final year at Anfield, then he looks set on going out with a bang. ‘The Egyptian King’ has rediscovered his best form under new coach Arne Slot and is making the Reds look like genuine title contenders both in the Premier League and Champions League.
Age is showing no signs of catching up with the 32-year-old, and if he can fire Liverpool to silverware come the end of the campaign, he could be the man to end Africa’s long wait for a first Ballon d’Or winner since George Weah in 1995.
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