Ballon d’Or 2025: LaLiga Explains Reasons Behind Yamal’s Award Denial

LaLiga president Javier Tebas has suggested that Barcelona winger Lamine Yamal missed out on the 2025 Ballon d’Or due to his young age, but remains confident the star will soon claim the prestigious award.

This year, Paris Saint-Germain’s Ousmane Dembélé topped the Ballon d’Or voting, with 18-year-old Yamal finishing as runner-up. Despite not winning the main prize, Yamal took home the Kopa Trophy for the best young player—his second consecutive win.

“If he had been older than 23, he would have won it too, I’m sure. But since he was younger, they gave him the other one [Kopa Trophy],” Tebas explained.

Barcelona President Joan Laporta, however, offered a different perspective, acknowledging that Dembélé’s victory was influenced by PSG’s Champions League triumph.