Paris Saint-Germain’s forward, Ousmane Dembele, who once wore FC Barcelona’s colors, has won the 2025 men’s Ballon d’Or after a historic campaign with the French club. The 28-year-old French maestro pulled the strings for PSG’s unprecedented treble, bagging Ligue 1, lifting the Coupe de France, and finally planting the club’s flag on the summit of Europe with their first-ever UEFA Champions League crown.
The award was presented at the Theatre du Chatelet in Paris, where an emotional Dembele, sidelined through injury and absent from PSG’s rescheduled match against Marseille, collected the trophy from legendary Ronaldinho.
“Thank you all,” Dembele, his voice laced with emotion, said on Monday. “What just happened to me is incredible. I'm speechless. It's been an amazing season with PSG. I've experienced incredible things, and I'm a little nervous; it's not easy.
“Receiving this trophy, especially from Ronaldinho, is truly exceptional. I want to thank PSG for signing me in 2023. The president, the entire team, and the club. They are a wonderful family. From day one, the president has treated me very well.”
Dembele’s 2024–25 season was statistically remarkable. Across all competitions, he scored 35 goals and provided 14 assists in 53 appearances. In Ligue 1, he shared the top scorer award with 21 goals and added eight assists in 29 league matches, earning a place in the Team of the Year and being named the league’s Player of the Year.
His performances in Europe were equally impressive, scoring eight goals in the Champions League, including crucial strikes against Liverpool, Manchester City, and Arsenal, as well as a hat-trick against Stuttgart. In the final against Inter Milan, PSG won 5-0, with Dembele directly assisting two goals and making a significant contribution to the team’s pressing.
A masterstroke from PSG’s manager, Luis Enrique, served as the secret sauce behind Dembele's return to brilliance. Originally deployed as a right-winger, he was moved to a central striker role in mid-December against Lyon, a change that proved decisive. From that date onwards, he scored 30 goals for PSG, taking the reins as the team’s attacking fulcrum after Kylian Mbappe’s departure to Real Madrid.
“I would also like to thank all the staff at PSG who have been fantastic,” he said. “Luis Enrique, who is like a father to me. He has been very important to my career, even though it's not over yet. Thank you to all my teammates. We've won almost everything. You've been by my side, and together we've raised our level to achieve these team trophies. This is an individual award, but we all share in this success as a team.”
“Thank you to all the clubs I've played for: Stade Rennes, Borussia Dortmund, and the club I always dreamed of playing for, Barcelona,” he said. “I learned so much there, playing alongside players like Messi and Iniesta. It was a great learning experience. I am so happy. When I see the list of legends who have won this award… I worked hard for the team to win the Champions League, Ligue 1 … to win this trophy is incredible. I am very happy.”
Dembele’s individual accolades include being named Ligue 1 and Champions League Player of the Year, and he also received the Champions League Player of the Season award.
PSG dominated the 2025 Ballon d’Or rankings, with teammate Vitinha finishing third and Achraf Hakimi also in the top ten. Barcelona’s 18-year-old sensation Lamine Yamal finished second and claimed the Kopa Trophy for the best under-21 player, while Gianluigi Donnarumma, now at Manchester City, won the Yashin Trophy for best goalkeeper.
Claiming the golden trophy, Dembele joins the French pantheon as the sixth Ballon d’Or champion, following Karim Benzema in 2022, and helping France tie Argentina for the most overall wins at eight.
