Trophy must be given to midfielder Rodri

Vinícius Júnior will not attend the Ballon d’Or ceremony this Monday (28). The Brazilian striker, who was considered a favorite by the Spanish press in recent weeks, and Real Madrid themselves decided not to attend the event, indicating that the Brazilian national team player has a remote chance of winning the award.

Vini Jr.’s staff did not confirm whether they had access to any information about the results of the award, which will only be announced at 4pm (Brasília time) this Monday, at a ceremony in Paris. Englishman Jude Bellingham, also from Real Madrid, is also in the running among the favorites for the award. And it won’t be on site either.

The Brazilian, the Englishman and the Spanish Rodri were considered by the European press as the biggest candidates for the award. Real’s decision not to attend the ceremony indirectly causes rumors that the winner would be the midfielder from the Spanish national team and Manchester City.

The information about Vini Jr.’s absence from the awards was initially released by RMC Sport, from France, and confirmed by Estadão. According to information from the newspaper Marca, 50 people from the Real Madrid delegation would travel to France this Monday.

The Real Madrid striker had been considered a favorite for months, since winning the last edition of the Champions League, the Merengue club’s 15th. The Spanish press, such as the newspaper Marca, even named him as the winner in the dispute over the last month.

In previous years, France Football magazine announced before the awards ceremony who, in fact, would be chosen as the best player in the world. This year, the result was kept secret until the day of the ceremony, so that the event would not be emptied, as happened with The Best this year, in which Lionel Messi, Haaland and Mbappé – finalists – did not go to Zurich.

The evaluation period by France Football, which organizes the Ballon d’Or, considers the 2023/2024 season in the analysis to choose the best player in the world. On that occasion, Vini scored 24 goals and provided nine assists with the Real Madrid shirt, and was crucial in winning the Champions League and the Spanish Championship.

His performance in the continental competition meant he was considered a favorite in the dispute. UEFA also chose the Merengue striker as the best player of the last edition, with six goals and five assists in Real Madrid’s 15th Champions League. In 2024, it will be the first year that the awards are held in partnership with UEFA.

Vini Jr. was approached by Saudi Arabian football at the beginning of this season, but the possibility of winning the Ballon d’Or was one of the reasons that made him stay at Real Madrid, at least until 2025. Since the award was created, all The winners of the men’s Ballon d’Or were playing in Europe at the time of the ceremony, except for Messi, who received the trophy while already playing for Inter Miami.

What may have weighed heavily, in the journalists’ assessment, is Vini Jr.’s performance for the Brazilian team. At the Copa América, the striker was criticized for not being able to take Brazil beyond the quarter-finals – in the same way he stands out at Real Madrid. Rodri, in addition to missing just one game for Manchester City last season, won the European Championship with the Spanish team.