Barcelona forward Raphinha said he was upset that he didn’t win the 2025 Ballon d’Or award after his outstanding season.
Paris Saint-Germain star Ousmane Dembélé received the prestigious prize on Sept. 2025 after beating Raphinha’s club teammate Lamine Yamal. Raphinha finished fifth, much to his surprise.
“I was upset because I expected to be at least in the top three,” the Brazil international told Sofascore when asked about the 2025 Ballon d’Or.
“I knew winning was very difficult, because the Champions League counts a lot for this award. So, I was upset with the position I ended up in. I would put myself in first place [for the Ballon d’Or].
“In my opinion, I think an individual award shouldn’t be based on a single competition. I deserved to have been in first place for what I delivered in the season, for the titles I won, for the numbers I achieved, and for everything I delivered on the field, I think I deserved to win.
“I’m satisfied and happy with the season I had. It’s not an individual award that will erase what I did last season.”
Raphinha had 34 goals and provided 25 assists in all 56 appearances as Barça won LaLiga, the Copa del Rey and the Spanish Supercopa last season.
He also netted 13 goals and had nine assists coming in his 14 Champions League outings as Barça reached the semifinal.
However, Raphinha acknowledges that not winning the Champions League hurt his chances.
“I ended up understanding that it [Ballon d’Or] involves a lot of things that I can’t control and other things that are difficult to pinpoint,” he said.
“In my opinion, if it were based on the season as a whole, I would deserve it. I would place Lamine [in second] and Pedri (in third) in the final ranking, with Dembélé in fourth.
“Since the award is based on a single competition, Dembélé deserved to win, especially because he delivered a spectacular season.”
Dembélé scored 35 goals in 53 appearances in all competitions for treble-winners PSG, who also won Ligue 1 and the Coupe de France in addition to their first ever Champions League trophy.
