Honestly, the drama from the Théâtre du Châtelet is still ringing in everyone's ears. If you thought the ballon d'or 2024 list was going to be a straightforward coronation for Vinícius Júnior, you weren't alone. Even Real Madrid thought so. They had a private jet fueled up and 50 custom suits ready to go before the bombshell dropped: Vini wasn't winning.
Instead, a guy on crutches took the stage.
Rodri. The Manchester City anchor who basically makes football look like a game of chess while everyone else is playing checkers. It was the first time a defensive midfielder won since Matthias Sammer in 1996, and the first time a Premier League player took the big one since Cristiano Ronaldo in 2008. But the list itself? It’s a wild mix of "obviously" and "wait, he was that high?"
The Top 10: Where the Real Battle Happened
The gap at the top was razor-thin. We're talking 41 points. To put that in perspective, 100 journalists each get to vote, and the difference between Rodri (1170 points) and Vinícius Júnior (1129 points) was basically a handful of people choosing "control" over "chaos."
The Podium and Beyond
- Rodri (Manchester City / Spain): The engine. He won the Premier League and Euro 2024.
- Vinícius Júnior (Real Madrid / Brazil): The spark. Champions League winner, but a tough Copa América hurt him.
- Jude Bellingham (Real Madrid / England): Started the season like a freight train.
- Dani Carvajal (Real Madrid / Spain): He won literally everything, but defenders never win these things.
- Erling Haaland (Manchester City / Norway): Still scoring a goal a minute, but lacked the international trophy.
Kylian Mbappé landed at sixth, which feels weirdly low for him, but his exit from PSG was... messy. Lautaro Martínez (7th) and Lamine Yamal (8th) rounded out the heavy hitters, followed by the retiring legend Toni Kroos and the ever-reliable Harry Kane.
The Full Ballon d'Or 2024 List (Men’s)
Looking down the rest of the thirty-man roster, you start to see the shift in power. No Messi. No Ronaldo. It's officially a new era, and the ballon d'or 2024 list reflects that perfectly.
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Phil Foden sat just outside the top ten at 11th. Florian Wirtz, the kid who drove Bayer Leverkusen's invincible season, took 12th. Then you’ve got Dani Olmo (13th), who was arguably the best player in the Euro knockouts.
The middle of the pack is a defensive masterclass. You have Ademola Lookman at 14th after that Europa League hat-trick, followed by Nico Williams (15th) and Granit Xhaka (16th). Federico Valverde, the man who never stops running, hit 17th.
The goalkeeping honors went to Emiliano Martínez at 18th—he also won the Yashin Trophy for the second year in a row. Martin Ødegaard (19th) and Hakan Çalhanoğlu (20th) proved that creative playmakers still have a seat at the table.
Rounding out the bottom third:
- Bukayo Saka (21st)
- Antonio Rüdiger (22nd)
- Rúben Dias (23rd)
- William Saliba (24th)
- Cole Palmer (25th)
- Declan Rice (26th)
- Vitinha (27th)
- Alejandro Grimaldo (28th)
- Artem Dovbyk and Mats Hummels (tied for 29th)
Why Real Madrid Boycotted the Night
Madrid's "super-sulk" became the story of the night. When news leaked on Monday afternoon that Vini wouldn't be holding the golden ball, Florentino Pérez reportedly pulled the plug on the whole trip.
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No Carlo Ancelotti (who won Men’s Coach of the Year).
No Kylian Mbappé (who shared the Gerd Müller Trophy with Kane).
Just empty seats.
The club's logic was simple, if a bit petty: if the criteria didn't give it to Vinícius, then Carvajal should have won. Since neither did, they claimed "Ballon d'Or-UEFA does not respect Real Madrid." It’s the kind of drama you usually only see in soap operas, yet here it was on football's biggest night.
Spanish Dominance on the Women’s Side
While the men’s side was a civil war, the women’s side was a coronation. Aitana Bonmatí won her second consecutive Ballon d'Or Féminin. She’s basically the female Rodri but with more goals.
Barcelona Femení didn't just win; they owned the podium. Caroline Graham Hansen took second, and Salma Paralluelo took third. It was a 1-2-3 sweep for the Blaugrana.
The rest of the women's top ten featured names like Sophia Smith and Mallory Swanson from the USWNT, proving that the Olympic gold medal run carried significant weight with the voters.
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Other Big Winners That Night
Lamine Yamal took home the Kopa Trophy for the best U21 player. He’s 17. Let that sink in. He beat Arda Güler and Kobbie Mainoo to the prize.
The Socrates Award for humanitarian work went to Jenni Hermoso for her bravery and advocacy in the women’s game. Emma Hayes, who transformed the USWNT in record time, was named Women’s Coach of the Year.
What the 2024 Results Mean for Next Year
This list changed the "vibes" of the award. For years, it was about who had the most YouTube highlights. Rodri winning suggests the voters are looking at the "invisible" work again.
If you're looking at the ballon d'or 2024 list and wondering who takes it in 2025, keep an eye on Lamine Yamal. He's already 8th. If Barcelona keeps this pace, he might be the youngest winner ever.
Also, watch out for the return of the injured. Rodri is out for a long time with an ACL tear, so he won't be defending his title. This leaves the door wide open for Vinícius to finally get his "justice" or for a new name like Haaland to finally break the Spanish midfield stranglehold.
To stay ahead of the curve, keep track of match ratings and "Big Chances Created" stats rather than just goal tallies. The 2024 voting showed that the panel is finally rewarding the architects, not just the finishers. You'll want to watch players who dictate tempo if you're trying to predict the 2025 winner early.