If you thought the days of the Ballon d'Or generating headlines were over after Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo's era of dominance came to an end, then think again. After one of the most closely-fought races for a number of years, Rodri came out on top in 2024, beating Vinicius Jr into second place as Real Madrid dramatically boycotted the ceremony in Paris in protest at their star player missing out.

Barcelona stars Pedri and Robert Lewandowski will join Real Madrid players in skipping the Ballon d'Or ceremony in Paris on Monday. The Barca duo, along with team-mates Lamine Yamal and Raphinha, have been nominated for the Golden Ball while manager Hansi Flick is in contention to win the best coach's award after guiding the Catalan giants to three titles in his maiden season.

The esteemed Golden Ball has been elusive to so many great footballers down the years, but who deserved it the most?

Barcelona are reportedly keeping tabs on Dusan Vlahovic ahead of his contract expiry as the Catalan side eye him as Robert Lewandowski's potential successor. The Blaugrana are desperate to find a long-term replacement for their Polish goal machine, whose deal runs out next summer, and the Serbian sharpshooter has become an option.

Robert Lewandowski has recalled the difficulty he had when speaking with Sir Alex Ferguson about a potential move to Manchester United. The Polish striker had been linked with a move to Old Trafford for some time during his Borussia Dortmund days and has explained why such no such deal materialised before he ended up heading to Bayern Munich and then Barcelona.