WeeklySA_AdminSNUBBED: Video posted by ultimate winner Rodri mocking the Brazilian star adds to the controversy of the 2024 Ballon d’Or awards
By Sports Reporter
Brazilian star forward Vinicius Junior has posted a strong message on social media after losing the 2024 Ballon d’Or to Spain’s Rodri.
“I will do 10 times more if necessary. They are not ready,” Vinicius wrote just minutes after Rodri received the 2024 Ballon d’Or on Monday night in Paris.
According to beIN Sports, Vinicius’s message means that he will strive even harder to win the Ballon d’Or in the future because he believed he deserved to win this year but was not awarded.
Hours before the award ceremony on Monday, a list spread on social media showing the final standings of the 30 players nominated for the Ballon d’Or, with Vini at the top and Rodri second. But a few hours later, Spanish media reported that all members of Vini’s club Real Madrid would not be in Paris for the award ceremony.
The leaked list predicted positions of 28 players correctly, except for the top two, as Rodri ultimately won the award, while Vini only won the Silver Ball.
Before the award ceremony, media outlets and European bookmakers predicted that Vini would win the award. A British bookmaker even offered odds in favor of Vinicius that were 131 times higher than those for Rodri. Spanish newspaper Marca published an article titled, “Vinicius, the Ballon d’Or winner.”
According to Relevo, Vini told Barcelona midfielder Gavi during the El Clasico on Oct. 26 that he would win the Ballon d’Or. The Brazilian star even held a party with his close friends from Sunday evening to Monday morning. He also promised to give Rolex watches to his Real Madrid teammates. But after the party, Vini received news that he would not win the award.
At the same time, the organizers said that the 2024 Ballon d’Or was the first time they did not announce the result in advance for the winner. The head of the organizing committee, Marc Las, confirmed that only two people knew the result in advance, he and the editor-in-chief of France Football magazine which presents the annual award that recognizes the best footballers in the world.
After the ceremony, many of Vinicius’s teammates criticized the award and encouraged him.
Former midfielder Toni Kroos posted a picture of Vinicius captioned: “The best”. Brazilian midfielder Lucas Paqueta commented that Vinicius was “excellent, no matter what people say.”
Wolverhampton midfielder Mario Lemina, who was not Vinicius’s teammate, also commented: “Rodri is the best midfielder in the world yes. But the best player in the world right now is Vinicius no doubt. Bye football.” Upon knowing the result, Real Madrid’s board of directors decided to cancel their plans to go to Paris.
The Ballon d’Or is considered the most prestigious individual award in football, awarded since 1956 to European players, and since 1995 it has been extended to international players. Lionel Messi holds the record for eight wins, in 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2015, 2019, 2021 and 2023.
For the men’s award, journalists from each country with a team in the FIFA top 100 will be selected to form a jury for the 30 nominees. Each journalist will select 10 players from the nominees, with points awarded to each player, respectively, of 15, 12, 10, 8, 7, 5, 4, 3, 2 and 1 points. The player with the highest total points wins the award.
Vinicius Jr said on Monday that he will keep on fighting racism even if his activism is what led to him not winning the Ballon d’Or, sources close to the player told Reuters.
Vinicius took to social media after finishing second in the prestigious award voting behind Spain and Manchester City midfielder Rodri.
“I will do it 10 times if I have to. They’re not ready,” Vinicius posted on X after his LaLiga side Real Madrid cancelled their plans to attend the ceremony in Paris, boycotting it in anticipation of the Brazilian not winning the men’s award.
Asked what Vinicius meant with his post, his management staff told Reuters that he was referring to his fight against racism and that they believe it was what led to him not winning the award, saying that “the football world is not ready to accept a player who fights against the system.”
The 24-year-old Brazil international has been subjected to racial abuse on several occasions in Spain, leading to at least two convictions for racist insults in pioneer cases in the country.
Real also won the Men’s Club of the Year award, and their manager Carlo Ancelotti was named Men’s coach of the year after winning the European and Spanish league double in a near-perfect campaign last season.
France Football, which organises the Ballon d’Or awards, was not immediately available for comment.
The awards are based on voting by a panel of journalists from the top 100 FIFA-ranked countries.
“Spain and Manchester City midfielder Rodri won the Ballon d’Or award for the best player in the world on Monday, beating Brazil’s Vinicius Jr and England’s Jude Bellingham, both of Real Madrid, to the prestigious prize. Barcelona’s Spain midfielder Aitana Bonmati won the women’s award for a second time.
Rodri, a first-time winner of the award, was instrumental in helping his team win an unprecedented fourth successive Premier League trophy last season. He was also named best player at this year’s European Championship after Spain lifted a record-extending fourth title.
The 28-year-old Madrid native is the first defensive midfielder to win the Ballon d’Or since Lothar Matthaus in 1990 and the third Spaniard to claim the prize after Alfredo Di Stefano (1957 and 1959) and Luis Suarez (1960).
While the award has been dominated by Spanish league players, no Spaniard had won since Barcelona great Luis Suarez more than 60 years ago, despite Spain’s “golden generation” that won the 2010 World Cup, the 2008 and 2012 Euros.
But Rodri, the player City coach Pep Guardiola said is “the best midfielder in the world”, finally ended that run with a unique skillset that has made his club the dominant force in England and helped Spain rule Europe again.
“Today is not a victory for me, it is for Spanish football, for so many players who have not won it and have deserved it, like (Andres) Iniesta, Xavi (Hernandez), Iker (Casillas), Sergio Busquets, so many others. It is for Spanish football and for the figure of the midfielder,” Rodri said on stage at the ceremony.
NO MESSI OR RONALDO
Rodri became the third person not named Lionel Messi or Cristiano Ronaldo to claim the award since 2008. It was the first time since 2003 in which neither Messi nor Ronaldo made the final 30-man list of nominees.
Real Madrid had decided to boycott the ceremony in anticipation of Vinicius not winning the men’s award.
No-one from the club was present when they won the men’s club of the year award, and their manager Carlo Ancelotti was named men’s coach of the year while Barcelona grabbed the trophy for women’s best club after both teams won the European and Spanish league double last season.
Vinicius Junior was seen as the favourite to take the award, but after learning he wouldn’t win, he boycotted the ceremony
His former teammate, Karim Benzema, appeared to suggest that the Brazilian was robbed after his chat with the winger
The Frenchman had a chat with the 24-year-old winger, suggesting that he was robbed.
“I spoke to Vini, he’s sad… it’s also normal. He deserved to win the Ballon d’Or,” he said via Fabrizio Romano.
“I’ve nothing against Rodri, good player… but I’m in my sofa watching TV and Rodri doesn’t do anything that makes you say: wow!”
The Brazil star was incredible in the 2023/24 season. He registered 24 goals and 11 assists, helping Real Madrid win La Liga and the Champions League, per Transfermarkt.
Manchester City briefly posted a video showing their star Rodri mocking Real Madrid’s Vinicius Jr. during his 2024 Ballon d’Or celebration on social media before removing it.
According to El Chiringuito, Man City shared the video on Instagram on Tuesday, a day after Rodri received his first Ballon d’Or.
In the clip, Rodri was seen celebrating with friends and family, singing in Spanish: “Ay Vinicius, ay Vinicius, ay Vinicius, ciao, ciao, ciao,” which translates to “Oh Vinicius, oh Vinicius, oh Vinicius, goodbye, goodbye, goodbye.”
The club later deleted the video and re-posted it without the singing part of Rodri. However, fans who have seen and recorded the original video quickly shared it on social media.
While some debated whether Rodri actually mentioned Vini, El Chiringuito and other outlets confirmed that the 2024 Ballon d’Or winner was indeed mocking the Brazilian player, who finished after him.
Rodri’s comments during the celebration sparked controversy and created discontent among Real Madrid fans, who pointed to his past disciplinary issues. They mentioned Rodri’s altercation with Morgan Gibbs-White during Man City’s match against Nottingham Forest on Sept. 23, 2023, in which he got a red card for choking the opponent.
This is not the first time Rodri’s celebration have put him in trouble. During Spain’s Euro 2024 victory celebration, he and team captain Alvaro Morata sang “It’s Spain, Gibraltar is Spain,” which touched a territorial controversy and resulted in a one-match suspension by UEFA.
Rodri and Vinicius were both top contenders for the 2024 Ballon d’Or.
Sports: Briefs
NEW MAN U COACH
The 39-year-old Portuguese, who will move to Old Trafford from Lisbon club Sporting on 11 November, has signed a contract until June 2027.
Former United striker Ruud van Nistelrooy, who took charge on an interim basis after Erik ten Hag was sacked on Monday, will stay on for the club’s next three fixtures.
Amorim is the sixth permanent manager United have appointed since Sir Alex Ferguson’s 26-year reign ended with his retirement in 2013.
In a statement, the club said Amorim “is one of the most exciting and highly rated young coaches in European football”.
WEAR SHORTS
Former Somalia captain Iqra Ismail,24, says a referee told her she must wear shorts to play in the Greater London Women’s Football League in the UK.
Ismail revealed in an Instagram video that she was not allowed to come on as a substitute for the team United Dragons during a game on Sunday because she was wearing tracksuit bottoms.
Football’s governing body in England has said that women playing the sport across its competitions are allowed to wear clothing that follows their religious beliefs after former Somalia captain Iqra Ismail was prevented from playing a match for not wearing shorts.
The Football Association (FA) said on Wednesday they were aware of the matter that arose two days earlier.
WOMANDLA
Jackline Juma is making history as the first woman to coach a men’s team in Kenya’s top flight – but is still having to cope with sexism on the touchline.
Leading FC Talanta into the new Kenyan Premier League (KPL) season, it did not take Juma long to realise that not everyone viewed her appointment as positive.
“There were some words uttered from the other bench like ‘We are not playing women’s football’,” Juma told BBC Sport Africa, discussing her second game in charge against Sofapaka. A 38-year-old mother of two, Juma began coaching over two decades ago and now holds the Confederation of African Football’s A license – the second-highest badge on offer on the continent.
She names Real Madrid boss Carlo Ancelotti and Arsenal coach Mikel Arteta as her inspirations in the dugout, and aims to implement a dominant possession-based style.
DWIGHT YORKS THE JOB
Former Manchester United and Trinidad and Tobago striker Dwight Yorke has been appointed head coach of his home country.
Yorke, 52, won 72 caps for Trinidad and Tobago between 1989 and 2009, scoring 19 goals, and captained them at the 2006 World Cup. He previously had a spell as his country’s assistant manager after retiring from playing in 2009. It is Yorke’s second job as a manager, having managed Australian A-League side Macarthur during the 2022-23 season. Trinidad and Tobago are currently ranked 102nd in the world.
PROTEAS BLOOM
South Africa wrapped up the second Test and the series 2-0 with a best-ever innings and 273 victory over Bangladesh in Chattogram on Thursday.
Bangladesh started the day on 38/4 – still 338 runs short of avoiding the follow-on – the Proteas went about their business quickly. Wickets tumbled early thanks to world number one Test bowler Kagiso Rabada. The seamer picked up three wickets in no time, leaving the hosts teetering at 48/8.
Then, not for the first time in this series, an unlikely partnership bloomed for Bangladesh. A stoic Monimul Haque was supported by Taijul Islam and the pair put on a record ninth-wicket partnership for the hosts. Spinner Senuran Muthusamy finally trapped Haque in front, breaking the 103-run stand. Fellow tweaker Keshav Maharaj got the final scalp.
Still a mammoth 416 runs short, Proteas captain Aiden Markram decided to enforce the follow-on, a confident decision given the stifling heat in Chattogram.
