Post-Messi and Ronaldo dominance yet to arrive - Dembélé’s Ballon d’Or is proof

Ousmane Dembélé’s Ballon d’Or triumph continues the trend set last year by Rodri: football’s most prestigious individual prize has no clear heir, unlike in the Messi-Cristiano Ronaldo era.

The Paris Saint-Germain forward’s victory has delayed the rise of Lamine Yamal, widely tipped to dominate the award in years to come. And then there are the two long-standing favourites: Kylian Mbappé and Erling Haaland. Both have been unlucky to see their best seasons overshadowed by Lionel Messi. The 2023 Ballon d’Or might have been a straight fight between the Frenchman and the Norwegian had Messi not lifted the World Cup. And when Mbappé did win the World Cup in 2018, Luka Modric snatched the crown. The feeling now is that from next year the battle will centre firmly on those three names.

Dembélé’s win, following Rodri and Karim Benzema in 2022, underlines that football has yet to find a single undisputed best player. For years, the Ballon d’Or reflected a true continental dominance: there was the age of Cruyff, then Keegan, Rummenigge, Platini, Van Basten, and Ronaldo the Phenomenon.

Now we are back in an era of balance - just as at the turn of the millennium, when Rivaldo, Figo, Owen and Nedvěd took turns on the podium. And perhaps that’s no bad thing: after years when the ceremony became predictable, the uncertainty makes it compelling once again.