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Lamine Yamal, Pedri and Fabián Ruiz, Spanish players nominated for the Ballon d'Or

Following Rodrigo’s success in the previous edition, three players from the Spanish national team are in the running to win this year’s prestigious award
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Thu, 07/08/2025 - 17:42

Rodrigo Hernández lifted the last Ballon d'Or, 64 years after Luis Suárez did the same. A hugely significant and important award for Spanish football, opening the door to a generation bursting with talent, potential, and above all, a desire to become the best.

As such, in this year’s edition of the award, three Spanish footballers are in the running to become the next Ballon d'Or winner. Spanish talent shines wherever it goes, something that never goes unnoticed by those who watch and enjoy what our stars are capable of creating on the pitch.

Lamine Yamal, Pedri and Fabián Ruiz, candidates to win the Ballon d'Or

Lamine Yamal is the most recent winner of the Kopa Trophy, for which he is once again nominated in this 69th edition. As if that were not enough, the FC Barcelona and Spanish national team star is also in contention for the most prestigious individual award in world football — the Ballon d'Or. This comes after a spectacular season: with Barça, he won all domestic titles (La Liga, Copa del Rey and Spanish Super Cup), and reached the semi-finals of the Champions League. His 18 goals and 25 assists for the Catalan giants back up the explosion of this precocious talent who has top-level football ahead of him for many years to come.

Moreover, with the national team he lifted the last European Championships in Germany just over a year ago, playing a key role in Luis de la Fuente’s side — a feat that reflects the quality of the Catalan winger, who was also a runner-up in the recent UEFA Nations League, scoring three goals.

Pedri González, like Lamine, can boast of winning La Liga, Copa del Rey, Supercopa de España and the European Championships. A brilliant season for the Canary Islander both individually and collectively with Barça and the national team. Six goals, eight assists, and countless dribbles, passes, through balls and magical footwork earned him a place on this prestigious list, as one of the most talented footballers on the planet.

Fabián Ruiz has had a dream season, the kind any footballer would wish for. The gifted Andalusian midfielder won every trophy available with Paris Saint-Germain (Champions League, Ligue 1, Coupe de France and Trophée des Champions). On top of that, he had already secured the Euros with Spain and played in two more finals: the UEFA Nations League and the FIFA Club World Cup. A consistently top-level performer season after season, he now earns his first Ballon d'Or nomination.

In addition, David Raya also appears among the candidates for the Yashin Trophy, the award given to the season’s best goalkeeper. The Arsenal goalkeeper, European champion with the Spanish national team, will compete for this honour against world-class keepers such as Courtois (Real Madrid CF), Emiliano Martínez (Aston Villa FC), Jan Oblak (Atlético de Madrid), Matz Sels (Nottingham Forest FC), Yann Sommer (Inter Milan), Alisson (Liverpool), Bono (Al-Hilal FC), Lucas Chevalier (Lille OSC) and Donnarumma (PSG).

Of the three Spanish candidates for the Ballon d'Or, two play for FC Barcelona, who have also been nominated as the best team of the season. The team led by Hansi Flick is in the running for this award after a great campaign. The Blaugrana won a clean sweep of domestic titles (La Liga, Copa del Rey and Spanish Super Cup), and were also on the brink of reaching the Champions League final.

We’ll have to wait until Monday, 22nd September, when the name of the 2025 Ballon d'Or winner will be announced at the Théâtre du Châtelet in Paris.

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