Ballon d’Or 2024: Real Madrid say they are ‘not respected’ as Vinicius Junior, Dani Carvajal miss out on award to Rodri
Published 28/10/2024 at 23:10 GMT
Real Madrid boycotted Monday's Ballon d'Or ceremony after it emerged that their players Vinicius Junior and Dani Carvajal had missed out on the award, which eventually went to Manchester City's Rodri. Awards did go to Madrid on the night and despite having three players ranked in the top four for the men's Ballon d'Or, they insisted that the club "does not go where it is not respected."
Ballon d'Or winner Rodri's biggest moments
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Real Madrid say the Ballon d’Or and UEFA “does not respect” the Spanish champions after Manchester City’s Rodri was crowned the 2024 winner.
Madrid winger Vinicius Junior was the heavy favourite to scoop the award in the days leading up to Monday’s ceremony, with the club expecting their first winner since Karim Benzema in 2022.
With rumours circulating that it would instead go to Man City midfielder Rodri, it emerged that there would be no one present at the ceremony from the Spanish club at the Theatre du Chatelet in France.
An emotional Rodri did collect the trophy, with Vinicius ranked second and his Real Madrid team-mate Jude Bellingham finishing third.
The result did not sit well with Real, who issued a statement saying the club were not respected.
“If the award criteria doesn't give it to Vinicius as the winner, then those same criteria should point to Carvajal as the winner,” the club told AFP on Monday.
“As this was not the case, it is clear that Ballon d'Or-UEFA does not respect Real Madrid. And Real Madrid does not go where it is not respected."
Carvajal, who scored alongside Vinicius in Madrid’s UEFA Champions League final victory over Borussia Dortmund at Wembley Stadium, finished fourth overall.
In the aftermath of the ceremony, Los Blancos players took to social media to speak out in support of Vinicius, who missed out on his first Ballon d’Or after a remarkable 12 months.
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Madrid midfielder Aurelien Tchouameni said: “They are not ready for what you’re gonna deliver,” while Eder Militao insisted: “You are the best and no one can take that away from you.”
Eduardo Camavinga also dedicated a post to Vinicius, while Madrid manager Carlo Ancelotti - who was awarded the Johan Cruyff Trophy for the best men’s coach - thanked the forward and Carvajal in a message on X.
Although there were no Madrid representatives in attendance, the club did not walk away empty-handed.
In addition to Ancelotti’s award, the Liga outfit were named Club of the Year after their record-extending 15th Champions League success.
Kylian Mbappe, who is now a Madrid player following his summer transfer, shared the Gerd Muller Trophy with Harry Kane.
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