Ballon d’Or results leak hours before ceremony but fans spot two issues

Dembele is widely expected to win after scoring 35 goals and providing 16 assists last season, along with earning several individual honors, including being named the Champions League’s Player of the Season.

Yamal also had an impressive campaign, registering 21 goals and 26 assists while helping Barcelona secure the La Liga title, Copa Del Rey, and Supercopa de Espana.

According to reports, only Vincent Garcia, editor-in-chief of France Football, knows who the winner is—and he claims not even L’Equipe’s management is informed.

“The Ballon d’Or winner? I will keep the secret even if it means falling out with some people,” said Garcia ahead of Monday’s ceremony. “I will keep the secret until the very end.”

Le Parisien reports that the results will be revealed live, with Ronaldinho—former star of Barcelona and AC Milan—set to present the trophy at the Theatre du Chatelet.

Despite this, a supposed leak appeared on social media when Argentine journalist Pablo Giralt shared an image of the alleged final rankings, captioned: “The alleged 2025 Ballon d’Or list has been leaked. Lamine Yamal would be the winner, Dembelé second, and Vitinha third. Opinions?”

Se filtró la presunta lista del Balón de Oro 2025. Lamine Yamal sería el ganador, Dembelé segundo y Vitinha tercero.

¿Opiniones? pic.twitter.com/CJkXSq4MFc

— Pablo Giralt (@giraltpablo) September 21, 2025

Giralt’s post, shared with his million-plus followers on X, sparked discussion—but fans noticed two clear spelling errors: Kylian Mbappe’s name was incorrect, and Inter Milan’s official name, Internazionale, was misspelled.

Nine players from PSG’s treble-winning squad have been nominated for this year’s Ballon d’Or.

Among them are Ousmane Dembele, Desire Doue, Achraf Hakimi, Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, Nuno Mendes, Joao Neves, Fabian Ruiz, Vitinha, and Gianluigi Donnarumma, who now plays for Manchester City.

However, most of these players are unlikely to attend the ceremony, as it coincides with Le Classique.

PSG’s Ligue 1 match against Marseille was moved from Sunday to Monday night, creating a direct clash with the Ballon d’Or event.

Dembele, Doue, and Neves—who are currently sidelined with injuries—are expected to be present at the gala, while the rest of the squad will likely miss it.

On Sunday, Marseille issued a statement confirming the postponement of their match due to severe weather forecasts.

“Olympique de Marseille acknowledges the decision of the Bouches-du-Rhône Prefecture to postpone the OM – PSG match, initially scheduled for this evening, for security reasons linked to the weather conditions in the region.

“As communicated by the Professional Football League, and in accordance with its regulations, the match is rescheduled for this Monday, September 22 at 8 p.m., at the Orange Vélodrome.

“The club informs its supporters that tickets purchased for tonight’s match will remain valid for tomorrow’s rescheduled match.”

The statement added: “Olympique de Marseille regrets that the conditions are not right to play the match this evening, both for its players, for its mobilized supporters already present, and for the full visibility of the event.”