Lionel Messi Sends Classy Message to Ousmane Dembele After PSG Star Won 2025 Ballon d’Or
- Lionel Messi has a message for Ousmane Dembele after the French winger won the 2025 Ballon d'Or award
- Dembele beat competition from the closest challenger, Lamine Yamal, to claim football’s biggest individual prize
- The award crowned a remarkable year for the former Barcelona star in an incredible year with Paris Saint-Germain
Lionel Messi has sent a classy message to former Barcelona teammate Ousmane Dembele after he won the 2025 Ballon d'Or award.
Dembele picked up the award on a glittering night at the Theatre du Chatelet on Monday, September 22, 2025, ahead of top contender Lamine Yamal.
Source: Getty Images
As noted by Transfermarkt, he scored an incredible 35 goals and provided 16 assists in 53 matches in all competitions for PSG last season to win the award.
He helped Paris Saint-Germain win all the trophies they competed for, including their first UEFA Champions League, and only Chelsea denied them the chance to win it at all at the Club World Cup final.
Yamal had a brilliant season for Barcelona as a 17-year-old, helping the Catalan giants win the domestic treble, beating rivals Real Madrid to all three.
However, Dembele's brilliance and PSG’s dominance shone brightest and pushed the France international forward to win the biggest individual prize in football.
Lionel Messi congratulates Ousmane Dembele
Dembele, after his victory on Monday night, took to his Instagram page to express gratitude at winning the award, describing it as a dream come true.
“So much joy, pride, and emotion. A dream come true. Thank you to everyone who has always supported me throughout this journey,” he wrote.
As spotted by @TouchlineX, his former Barcelona teammate and the record eight-time Ballon d'Or winner, Lionel Messi, sent him a congratulatory message.
“Great Ous. Congratulations, I am so happy for you. You deserve it,” the Inter Miami star wrote.
Messi and Dembele share a great relationship, having been together at Barcelona for four years before that Argentine surprisingly left in 2021 to join PSG.
PSG rebuilt their squad in the summer of 2023, ushering out big stars, including Neymar Jr and Kylian Mbappe, making Dembele their big star.
Source: Getty Images
The former Borussia Dortmund star, during his acceptance speech, acknowledged Messi as someone he learnt a lot from during their time in Barcelona.
“I want to thank FC Barcelona, the club of my dreams. I played with Lionel Messi. I want to thank him, too. I learned so much from him. To have been able to play with Lionel Messi.. I have learned so much from him,” he said as quoted by Mirror UK.
Dembele joined an elite list of players who have won the FIFA World Cup, UEFA Champions League, and Ballon d'Or, a list that includes Messi and Ronaldinho, who presented him with his award, but not Cristiano Ronaldo.
Full list of winners at Ballon d'Or
Legit.ng reported the full list of winners at the Ballon d'Or ceremony after Ousmane Dembele claimed the biggest award at the Theatre du Chatelet.
Barcelona and Spain forward Aitana Bonmati made history by becoming the third player, after Lionel Messi and Michel Platini, to win three consecutive awards.
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Source: Legit.ng
