Kylian Mbappe, Raphinha Face Setback in Ballon d’Or Poll as Ousmane Dembele Gains Ground | OneFootball

Ousmane Dembele has been one of the standout footballers of 2025. The Frenchman has netted 21 goals this year, with his latest coming in the second leg of the UEFA Champions League Round of 16 against Liverpool.

Stats du Foot pointed out on X that Dembele became the first player since Cristiano Ronaldo in 2018 to score 21 goals in the first three months of a calendar year in official competitions with a club from one of Europe’s top five leagues.

In addition, Score90 recently ranked the Ballon d’Or contenders, placing Dembele just outside the top five in sixth. If Paris Saint-Germain reaches the Champions League final or wins the tournament, his chances for a higher ranking will only increase.

Can Ousmane Dembele win the Ballon d’Or?

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L’Equipe reports that Dembele would be the favorite to win the Ballon d’Or, according to a poll of voters, with 40.9 percent of the votes in favor of the Frenchman.

Score90 has a different favorite. They put Raphinha as the favorite to win the Ballon d’Or right now, with Mohamed Salah coming in second and Kylian Mbappe coming in third.

It will be interesting to see if Dembele can shock the football world and win this award. Should PSG win the Champions League and the Frenchman plays a significant role, then his winning the honor isn’t so far-fetched.