Real Madrid legend Ronaldo Nazario has named his ‘real winner’ of the 2024 Ballon d’Or.
The 2024 Ballon d’Or was awarded to Manchester City midfielder Rodri.
Real Madrid were so displeased when they found out the result that they didn’t attend the ceremony, a forthright but perhaps petty show of solidarity with their snubbed superstar.
Vinicius Jr was another outstanding candidate to be named the world’s best men’s footballer. The Brazilian was hugely influential as Real Madrid won La Liga and the Champions League in 2023-24, scoring 24 times in all competitions.
Rodri was voted the Ballon d’Or winner ahead of the Real Madrid man. He too was a domestic and European champion after winning the Premier League with Manchester City and the European Championship with Spain.
That wasn’t enough to get the nod of approval from Ronaldo Nazario, but the real Ballon d’Or winner wasn’t Vini Jr either, according to the legendary striker.
“Without detracting from Rodri, Vinicius had to win the Ballon d’Or, which has missed a great opportunity to crown Vinicius as the best in the world,” Ronaldo told Marca. “It has nothing to do with Rodri, let it be clear, but Vinicius has been much more decisive last season.”
If Rodri is seen as a controversial winner in the eyes of fans in Madrid and Brazil and beyond, Ronaldo’s choice would have come as a surprise to Vini Jr too. “What am I going to say if the real Ballon d’Or winner is Florentino Perez, he is a father to me. He taught me a lot and gave me everything in the world of football.”
Ronaldo’s grasp on the Ballon d’Or voting criteria might be tenuous but his choice would at least have guaranteed the attendance of Florentino Perez and representatives from Real Madrid at the ceremony in Paris. The Real Madrid president is himself a controversial figure, having been the architect of the club’s Galacticos transfer policy and one of the key advocates for the despised European Super League project.
Like Vini Jr, Ronaldo knows what it feels like to be a Ballon d’Or runner-up. He was voted in second place behind Matthias Sammer in 1996 but went on to collect the award in 1997 and 2002. Vinicius could follow in his compatriot’s footsteps and bag a couple of Ballon d’Or awards in the next five seasons.