Real Madrid legend Zinedane Zidane threw a jab at the organizers of the Ballon d’Or after Vinicius Jr. failed to win the prestigious award.
Zidane claimed the award had lost its credibility after Al Nassr striker Cristiano Ronaldo failed to win the award in 2018.
During an interview with DAZN, Zidane showed the utmost support for Vinicius Jr., saying, “If we look at performance throughout the season, Vinicius Jr. was outstanding. He deserves recognition for all his hard work and talent.”
In addition, he said, “The winner may not be the one who truly deserves it. Honestly, the award lost its credibility when Cristiano Ronaldo didn’t win in 2018.”
The former France international, Zidane, received the Ballon d’Or award during his playing time at Juventus in 1998, which prompted Real Madrid to sign him.
In 2018, the organizers of the Ballon d’Or decided to give the award to Luka Modric, who only scored four goals in 81 appearances compared to Ronaldo with 65 goals in 75 appearances.
Other Football Players Who Questioned The Credibility Of the Ballon d’Or
Over the years, the most prestigious awards for the best players in the world have lost their credibility due to their means of selecting the winners.
In the 2022–23 season, former Paris Saint-Germain midfielder Jerome Rothen threw jab at the organizers of the Ballon d’Or after Lionel Messi won the 2023 Ballon d’Or award ahead of Erling Haaland.
“It’s a disgrace! Of course it’s a disgrace. As far as I’m concerned, it should have gone to Haaland”, he said.
“From August 2022 to June 2023, what criteria lead us to say that Leo Messi is above the others? There’s hardly any criterion where he’s number 1.”
“If we look at his record, he’s inferior to Haaland, even though he won the World Cup.”
“Haaland won everything with Manchester City. And of course you can’t compare him with the World Cup because Haaland is Norwegian.”
Al Nassr striker Ronaldo also criticized the Ballon d’Or credibility, stating he had better stats than Kylian Mbappe, Haaland, and Lionel Messi in 2023.
He said, “Ballon d’Or and The Best are losing credibility. Numbers are reality. We have to analyze the entire season.
“It’s not to say that Messi didn’t deserve the award, or Haaland or even Kylian Mbappe. I simply no longer believe in these awards.”
What Vinicius Jr Needs to do to win the 2025 Ballon d’Or
Even though he lost the Ballon d’Or to Manchester City defensive midfielder Rodri, the Brazilian is still likely to win the prestigious award in the future.
A lot of spectators expected the Brazilian to win the award, but his sense of sportsmanship on the pitch was the only limiting factor.
If he needs to get the award in 2025, Vinicius needs to perform beyond expectations and show a lot of fair play or good sportsmanship on the pitch.
He needs to extensively ensure Real Madrid win another treble this season with huge goals and assists.
Also, he should ensure Brazil qualify for the 2026 FIFA World Cup and stay fit all through the qualifiers.
