Ballon d'Or 2025: Which Stars Soared to the Top and Who Crashed Down the Rankings?

The 2025 Ballon d'Or ceremony has concluded with Ousmane Dembélé claiming the prestigious award for the first time, making him the sixth French footballer to achieve this honor.

Dembélé led Paris Saint-Germain's dominant campaign across domestic and European competitions, culminating in the club's maiden Champions League victory. In additional categories, Lamine Yamal made history by becoming the first player to secure two Kopa Trophies in back-to-back years, Gianluigi Donnarumma earned recognition as top goalkeeper, and Viktor Gyökeres received the best striker accolade.

In women's football, Aitana Bonmatí achieved a remarkable third consecutive Ballon d'Or Féminin, equaling Lionel Messi's record as the only players to claim three straight Ballon d'Or titles. Additionally, inaugural winners emerged in the women's Kopa, Yashin, and Gerd Müller categories, with Vicky López, Hannah Hampton, and Ewa Pajor receiving their respective honors.

Examining both the 2024 and 2025 nominee lists reveals significant shifts for various players. Here's an analysis of the most notable climbers and decliners in the men's 2025 Ballon d'Or rankings.

Most Significant Climbers

While Dembélé's rise from complete absence to champion is remarkable, Vitinha and Cole Palmer emerge as standout performers among previously ranked players, ascending 24 and 17 positions respectively.

The ultimate champion had never received a nomination for football's most coveted individual accolade prior to this year.

Among those absent from last year's rankings who secured 2025 recognition, three players earned top-10 placements: Mohamed Salah, Raphinha, and Achraf Hakimi—with Pedri claiming 11th position.

Both Salah and Raphinha were considered strong contenders for the trophy at various stages throughout the season, though Dembélé began to separate himself as PSG's momentum built.

Most Significant Decliners

Special circumstances explain both Rodri and Dani Carvajal's complete absence from the 2025 nominations, as both players missed significant portions of the 2024–25 campaign due to injuries. Rodri was notably using crutches during his 2024 award acceptance.

Real Madrid's Vinícius Júnior and Jude Bellingham, alongside Manchester City's Erling Haaland, experienced dramatic declines. Lautaro Martínez dropped out of the top 10 from seventh to 20th position, while Florian Wirtz in his concluding Leverkusen campaign slipped from 12th to barely securing a top-30 spot, and Foden disappeared from the shortlist entirely.

Additional notable omissions from this year's shortlist include Dani Olmo, Ademola Lookman, Martin Ødegaard, Federico Valverde, William Saliba, Antonio Rüdiger, and Nico Williams.

Who might experience even more dramatic rises next season? Explore the 10 leading candidates for the 2026 award.