Ballon d'Or 2025: Buhari’s Ex-Aide Reacts to Claims That Award Has Been 'Rigged'
- A former presidential aide in Nigeria, Bashir Ahmad, has reacted after a purported revelation of the winner of the 2025 Ballon d'Or leaked
- According to the report, Spanish forward Lamine Yamal, an attacker with FC Barcelona, led the Ballon d'Or ranking
- The 'leak' suggested Yamal, 18, edged out contenders like Ousmane Dembélé, Raphinha, and Vitinha
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Paris, France - Bashir Ahmad on Monday, September 22, said Barcelona forward, Lamine Yamal, does not deserve the 2025 Ballon d’Or.
Ahmad, a former special assistant on digital communications to late ex-Nigerian president Muhammadu Buhari, stated that France Football, organisers of the Ballon d'Or, 'cannot afford to rig it in Yamal's favour'.
Source: Twitter
Recent rumours indicate that Lamine Yamal of FC Barcelona would be announced as the winner of the Ballon d'Or 2025 tonight, Monday, September 22.
Reacting, the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) wrote on his verified X (formerly Twitter) page:
"Even though I don’t really care, but the truth is Lamine Yamal does not deserve this year’s Ballon d’Or. And I honestly don’t think the French newspaper, for the sake of its own integrity, can afford to rig it in his favor. Having back-to-back questionable awards, just in the quest to hurt Real Madrid twice would completely destroy what little credibility the award holds."
Legit.ng reported that in recent times, the Ballon d’Or was at the center of criticism for its integrity.
In 2024, the award was highly controversial, with Manchester City's Rodri winning over Real Madrid's Vinicius Jr., prompting accusations of favoritism and bias.
Source: Getty Images
Vinicius was the heavy favourite to win the Ballon d'Or in 2024 given he led Real Madrid to their 15th UEFA Champions League (UCL) and 36th La Liga crown. However, Spain midfielder Rodri instead won it ahead of the Brazilian. This news left many football fans fuming as they slammed France Football and UEFA claiming that Ballon d'Or has lost its credibility.
Ballon d'Or 2025 and likely winner
Some of the world's best players will head to Paris for the annual award ceremony on Monday night, September 22, which will unveil the 2025 recipient of football's ultimate individual prize.
Yamal, Ousmane Dembele, and Raphinha are the frontrunners to take home the prestigious Golden Ball trophy.
The three players have been the headline act in impressive years for their respective clubs, and either would be first-time winners.
Expert tips Dembele for win
Meanwhile, Femi Fabunmi, a sports analyst, tipped Dembele to win the coveted award.
According to Fabunmi, "all the odds favour" the French star.
He said:
"From all indices available, France and PSG's Dembele should get it. All the odds favour him. He won the Ligue 1 with PSG same as the Champions League. Somehow, there were no international competitions in the said year, so we are going to rate him based on his contributions for clubsides and maybe consider his little contributions for France.
"He was last season's top scorer in Ligue 1 also made top 3 in the UCL. But it's a no brainer, Dembele should nick it ordinarily."
Read more on Ballon d’Or:
- 2025 Ballon d’Or: Abedi Pele backs Mohamed Salah to win, gives pictorial reason
- Ballon d’Or: Full list of players who have won football’s biggest individual award
PSG official backs Dembele
Legit.ng earlier reported that PSG sporting director, Luis Campos, made a strong case for Dembele to be crowned the Ballon d'Or winner ahead of Yamal.
The football administrator believed that the France international forward would be a deserved winner of the coveted international award over the Barcelona star.
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Proofreading by Funmilayo Aremu, copy editor at Legit.ng.
Source: Legit.ng
