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Who Will Win the 2024 Ballon d'Or?
The best player in soccer will receive the 2024 Ballon d'Or in a prestigious ceremony set in Paris.
Predicting the winner of the Ballon d'Or used to mean choosing between Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi. For the first time since 2003, though, neither of the sport's greatest players of all time were nominated for the award. Instead, a new winner will be crowned come Monday, Oct. 28.
Real Madrid's Vinícius Júnior and Jude Bellingham, along with Manchester City's Rodri headline the list of 30 nominees. Erling Haaland, Emiliano Martínez and Bukayo Saka are just three more of the impressive players up for soccer's biggest individual award.
The recipient of the 2024 Ballon d'Or will become just the third player in the last 15 years to take home the honor instead of Ronaldo and Messi. Arguments can be made for several nominees, but one is the sure favorite to win the award.
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Who Will Win the 2024 Ballon d'Or?
Vinícius Júnior is the favorite to win the 2024 Ballon d'Or. The Brazilian was Real Madrid's best player in its successful La Liga and Champions League campaigns last season.
Despite missing chunks of time due to various injuries throughout the 2023–24 season, the winger still scored 15 La Liga goals. The haul marked Vinícius Jr.'s second-best production of his La Liga career and propelled Real Madrid to its 36th Spanish title.
In the Champions League, Vinícius Jr. recorded six goals and four assists across 10 appearances. Without his brace against Bayern Munich in the first leg of the semifinals, Los Blancos likely do not get to the 2024 UCL final, where the Brazilian found the back of the net against Borussia Dortmund. Less than 10 minutes after his goal, Real Madrid claimed its 15th European title.
At 23 years old, Vinícius Jr. broke Messi's longstanding record and became the youngest player to ever score in two Champions League finals. Speaking of finals, the Brazilian also bagged a hat trick in the 2024 Spanish Super Cup final against Barcelona, bringing home another trophy for Real Madrid.
There is no question that Rodri also deserves the honor for his contributions to Manchester City's Premier League title and Spain's Euro 2024 title, but Vinícius Jr. is slated to become the ninth Real Madrid player in history to bring home the Ballon d'Or.
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Amanda Langell is a Sports Illustrated Soccer freelance writer covering the European game and international competitions.