After winning a fourth straight Premier League championship and Euro 2024, Rodri, a midfielder for Manchester City and Spain, was given the men’s Ballon Dor on Monday. However, Real Madrid did not attend the Ballon Dor ceremony. Let’s find out more about the ceremony, what the Ballon Dor Winner said, and why Ronaldo and Messi didn’t make the shortlist.
Was Rodri Winning the Ballon Dor A Surprise?
The decision to award the world’s best player prize (Ballon Dor) to midfielder Rodri surprised many, as Real Madrid’s star Vinicius Junior was widely considered the favorite after winning both the Liga and Champions League titles.
Just hours before the Ballon Dor ceremony in Paris, Real Madrid announced that it would not attend the event at the Chatelet Theatre, seeing the decision as a slight against Vinicius.
Rodri, 28, played a pivotal role for Manchester City, helping them edge out Arsenal to secure the Premier League title last season. He was also named player of the tournament at Euro 2024, where he helped Spain claim an unexpected victory in Germany.
In his post-award press conference, Rodri responded calmly when asked about Real Madrid’s absence. Rodri stated that he just focused on his teammates and his team and declared Real Madrid’s absence as their own choice.
Though the French organizers claimed they kept the winner’s identity a closely guarded secret this year, the news seemed to have leaked before the event.
Why Did Real Madrid Say ‘No’ To Ballon Dor Ceremony 2024?
The drama began hours before the Ballon Dor ceremony, with Real Madrid making a bold statement. The Spanish and European champions declared that if Vinicius Junior wasn’t awarded, then the honor should go to his teammate Dani Carvajal.
Both Vinicius and Carvajal played key roles in Real Madrid’s 2-0 victory over Borussia Dortmund in the Champions League final at Wembley. Over the season, Vinicius scored 24 goals and contributed 11 assists in 39 matches, helping Real Madrid secure three titles.
“If the award criteria don’t make Vinicius the Ballon Dor winner, then they should point to Carvajal,” said Real Madrid in a statement to AFP. “Since this isn’t the case, it’s clear that Ballon Dor & UEFA do not respect Real Madrid. And Real Madrid won’t be present where it isn’t respected.”
Real Madrid Crowned as Men’s Team Of The Year
Jude Bellingham, Fede Valverde, Antonio Rudiger, and Kylian Mbappe were among the other players nominated.
The Ballon Dor Winner is selected by an international jury of 100 sports journalists. The Amaury group, which owns L’Equipe and France Football magazine, denied rumors of a leaked winner and assured AFP that “no player or club” knew the result beforehand.
In the dearth of any Real Madrid officials, a video was shown on stage as the squad was awarded the men’s team of the year.
Pep has High Praise for His Midfield Maestro
Pep Guardiola, the manager of Manchester City, has hailed Rodri as “the best in his role.” “He is capable of anything. He has excellent quality, game awareness, and mentality. Guardiola remarked, “He’s always ready.”
Known for his sharp passing and ball-winning skills, the former Atletico Madrid player also has a knack for scoring crucial goals. He scored the goal that secured City’s first Champions League title in 2023 and netted key goals for Spain, including an equalizer in their Euro 2024 last-16 match against Georgia.
Rodri’s importance to Manchester City is clear; the team’s last four Premier League losses happened while he was out.
Currently, City leads the Premier League, but their hopes for a fifth consecutive title took a hit in September when Rodri suffered an ACL injury, which has ruled him out for the season.
What Does the Ballon Dor Winner Express?
Rodri had an outstanding year in 2024, playing a vital role in the success of both Manchester City and Spain. Manchester City claimed a record fourth consecutive Premier League title, while Spain lifted the Euro 2024 trophy this summer.
After winning the award, Rodri shared his emotions, saying, “Tonight is incredible for me. After all the hard work and dark times, I went through, I finally see the light,” as translated by the broadcast.
Rodri credited his improved performance in the final third as a major factor in winning this award. ” I knew that to improve, I needed to play a greater part of the last third which means more goals and more assists as I was a classic midfielder before,” he said. The 28-year-old also expressed gratitude to his club and national teammates for supporting his journey to individual success.
Rodri defeated Jude Bellingham and Vinícius Jr. of Real Madrid.
Why Ronaldo and Messi Weren’t on the 2024 Ballon d’Or Shortlist?
When you talk about the most prestigious individual award in the football world, you must think about two of the Greatest Players of this generation, Ronaldo and Messi. These are the two names that dominated soccer for more than 17 years but as they say, everything comes to an end!
Sadly, the beautiful era of Messi and Ronaldo is over. Sad for many but a glimpse of hope for many talented footballers to finally come into the spotlight on the biggest stage. And that was exactly the case this season.
Ronaldo and Messi have won a total of 13 Ballon Dor Awards together with the latter winning it for a record 8 times. With these two leaving the grand stage of European top football, the two new names emerged last season based on their incredible performances. And it was the Spaniard who went to bed with the glittering France Football Ballon d’Or.