Real Madrid boycotted the Ballon d’Or ceremony as Rodri was awarded the prestigious title, beating Vinicius Jr. to the top individual honour in football.
Despite arriving on crutches due to injury, Manchester City’s Rodri was named the best player in the world during a surprising announcement on Monday night.
Many had expected Brazilian winger Vinicius to secure his first Ballon d’Or trophy after leading Real Madrid to an extraordinary league and European double last season.
Vinicius was widely considered a frontrunner to join the ranks of Los Blancos legends such as Karim Benzema, Luka Modric, Cristiano Ronaldo, Fabio Cannavaro, Ronaldo Nazario, and Luis Figo.
However, in a surprising turn of events, Rodri, a hero for Manchester City and a Euro winner with Spain, was crowned king of the football world.
Rodri received his award at the glittering ceremony in Paris, which Real Madrid opted to skip.
His teammate Erling Haaland joined him in the top 10.
Vinicius finished in second place, with Real Madrid’s Jude Bellingham rounding out the top three, followed by Dani Carvajal and Haaland.
In seventh place was Lautaro Martinez, flanked by Kylian Mbappe and 17-year-old sensation Lamine Yamal, who also won the Kopa Trophy for the best young player.
Recently retired Toni Kroos and England captain Harry Kane, who shared the Gerd Muller Trophy for top scorer with Mbappe, finished ninth and tenth, respectively.
This year marked the first time in a decade that the Ballon d’Or did not go to a Real Madrid player following their Champions League triumph.
The first words of our 2024 Ballon d'Or, Rodri! #ballondor pic.twitter.com/HbcPorxTlp
— Ballon d'Or (@ballondor) October 28, 2024
The decision to award the honor to someone outside the club reportedly left president Florentino Perez “furious,” leading him to cancel Real Madrid’s attendance at the ceremony, despite the club being named Team of the Year.
Reports suggested that Manchester City officials were the ones to inform Real Madrid about the decision.
Last season, Vinicius scored six goals and provided four assists in just ten Champions League matches, playing a crucial role in Real’s 15th European title.
He scored the second goal in the 2-0 final victory over Borussia Dortmund.
Furthermore, Vinicius was involved in 20 goals across 26 La Liga matches last season.
Real Madrid expressed their disappointment, accusing the organizers of disrespect in their decision to award the Ballon d’Or elsewhere.
The club believed that if there were to be a different winner, the honour should have gone to Dani Carvajal, who added a Euros trophy to his domestic double.
A statement read: “If the award criteria doesn’t give it to Vinicius as the winner, then those same criteria should point to Carvajal as the winner.
“As this was not the case, it is clear that Ballon d’Or-Uefa does not respect Real Madrid.
“And Real Madrid does not go where it is not respected.”
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