Barcelona star Lamine Yamal missed out on the 2025 Ballon d’Or to PSG attacker Ousmane Dembele but it will not be end of his record-breaking attempt.
At 18, Lamine Yamal would have smashed the record held by Ronaldo Nazario as the youngest-ever winner, after the former Brazil international won it aged 21 in 1997.
Lamine Yamal now has three future attempts to claim it as the youngest recipient and he is certain to be amongst the favourites in 2026.
The teenager scored 18 goals and laid on 21 assists across all competitions as Barcelona won the La Liga, Copa del Rey and Spanish Supercup trophies in 2024/25.
His meteoric rise within the Ballon d’Or ranks shows the direction he’s heading in, after finishing eighth in 2024, before landing second to Dembele in 2025.
Whilst the main award evaded him, the Catalan-born forward retained his Kopa Trophy, as the first player to do so since it’s inception in 2018.
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Despite his frustration, Lamine Yamal has been hailed for his sportsmanship towards Dembele, and Flick believes it’s only a matter of time before he lifts the trophy.
“I spoke to him yesterday, he’s motivated to win the Ballon d’Or next year, having failed to win it now,” as per Marca.
“Dembele also deserved to win. Lamine accepts that and is motivated. He’ll have a chance of winning it again.
“I appreciate that many of our players were on the shortlist there too. It speaks volumes about what we did last season. He’ll be back soon.”
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