Ballon d’Or 2025 Power Rankings: Kylian Mbappe makes his move! Real Madrid star edges ahead of Barcelona trio – but Mohamed Salah remains No.1

In 2024-25: 34 goals, four assists.

Rodri became the first Ballon d’Or winner from the Premier League since 2008 when he picked up the Golden Ball in Paris in October. And at the time, it seemed the most likely player from the English top-flight to follow in his footsteps was his Manchester City team-mate Erling Haaland.

With the likes of Kevin De Bruyne and Phil Foden enduring slow starts to the campaign, Haaland had to lead from the front, and the incessant goal machine looked nailed on for a third consecutive Golden Boot. However, the Norway international hasn’t been having things all his own way as City’s form has nosedived, and suddenly both team and individual silverware are looking less and less likely for Pep Guardiola and his players.

In 2024-25: Three goals, one assist, 18 clean sheets.

Though closing in on his 34th birthday, Van Dijk continues to stand out as the best central defender in world football, as the Liverpool captain is breezing through games at the very highest level while providing leadership for a Reds side that is still in the hunt for three trophies.

If this does prove to be Van Dijk’s final season at Anfield, with his contract now into its final few months, he seems determined to leave with Liverpool on top, and there are few doing more to ensure that is the case on Merseyside right now.

In 2024-25: Four goals, six assists. Won Supercopa de Espana.

His goal and assist numbers don’t jump off the page, but anyone who has watched Barcelona this season will wax lyrical about the levels that Pedri has been displaying for Hansi Flick’s side. Seemingly injury-free for the first time in years, the Spain star is finally returning on the potential he showed as a teenager before fitness issues caught up with him.

For him to get into the Ballon d’Or running, he will likely have to translate his La Liga performances into the Champions League, but with Barca having received a favourable draw, there is every chance that Pedri could be the midfield lynchpin who helps lead them to the final.

In 2024-25: 21 goals, five assists.

Atletico Madrid raised plenty of eyebrows when they splashed out €95 million on Alvarez over the summer, and the Argentine’s slow start to life at the Metropolitano brought back memories of Joao Felix’s failed big-money move to the Rojiblancos. However, while Alvarez still only has nine La Liga goals to his name this term, the level of his all-round game has gone up a notch, while he has been finding the target with regularity in cup competitions.

Diego Simeone’s side are right in the hunt for the Spanish league title and are regarded as genuine Champions League contenders, meaning if Alvarez can keep finding the net, he could be set for yet another Ballon d’Or nomination.

In 2024-25: 19 goals, seven assists.

Inter are not having it all their own way in Serie A this season having run away with the Scudetto last term, but Simone Inzaghi’s side are still considered the best team in Italy, and few would bet against them defending their crown over the coming months if Lautaro Martinez can find his best form in front of goal.

The Argentina international is enjoying the most profitable years of his career right now, and with the Nerazzurri having also proven themselves as one of the toughest teams to beat in the Champions League, Lautaro will be keen to show the rest of Europe what he can do through the knockout rounds.

In 2024-25: 15 goals, seven assists.

After a slow start to the campaign, a run of 15 straight wins in all competitions catapulted Atletico Madrid into La Liga’s title race and the Champions League last 16, with Griezmann yet again at the heart of everything for Diego Simeone’s side. His goal and assist numbers are far from eye-popping, but the former France international continues to pull the strings at the Metropolitano, meaning the likes of Julian Alvarez can thrive ahead of him.

It remains to be seen whether Atleti can sustain their current level through an upcoming gauntlet of fixtures that includes three games against Barcelona and a two-legged Champions League clash with Real Madrid, but as rumours persist regarding whether Griezmann will leave for MLS in the summer of 2025, the 33-year-old may have extra motivation to secure the Rojiblancos some silverware.

In 2024-25: 25 goals, six assists. Won Trophee des Champions.

Has the real Dembele finally arrived?! Ever since he left Borussia Dortmund for Barcelona, the French winger has frustrated fans more than he’s delighted them, despite clearly being a player of great ability. Now, though, Dembele seems to have found a groove midway through his second season at PSG, with his performances helping the French champions maintain their Champions League hopes as they continue their stranglehold of Ligue 1.

Whether this is just a hot streak remains to be seen, but if Dembele can keep this up for the remainder of the campaign, it will be difficult to keep him off the Ballon d’Or shortlist.

In 2024-25: 18 goals, 11 assists.

After leading Bayern to the Bundesliga title in 2023, Musiala – like many of his team-mates – endured a quieter season last time out. However, the attacking midfielder has carried his form from Euro 2024 into the current campaign and was the outstanding player in German football through the first half of the season.

Musiala obviously has to contend with having a goal machine like Harry Kane taking plenty of the headlines around Bayern, but the creative midfielder is doing all he can to prove he is the main man at Allianz Arena. If he can maintain his best form while leading the Bavarians to trophies at home and on the continent, he should be among the main Ballon d’Or contenders.

In 2024-25: 18 goals, 16 assists. Won DFL-Supercup.

Wirtz made his first Ballon d’Or shortlist in 2024, and he is likely to become a staple over the next decade or so as the 21-year-old builds on his breakout campaign. So far, the 2024-25 season has seen the playmaker maintain the form he showed through the previous campaign, with his performances in the Champions League proving particularly eye-catching.

Xabi Alonso’s side, however, have not been quite the same proposition in the Bundesliga as they were in winning the title last term, so Wirtz may need to play even better to get himself in true Golden Ball contention.

In 2024-25: 32 goals, 10 assists.

Is this the year Kane finally ends the wait for the first trophy of his otherwise-storied career? Certainly, Bayern have got themselves into a strong position in the Bundesliga under Vincent Kompany, with Kane yet again showing his goal-scoring instincts remain at a high level despite having turned 31 over the summer.

Rodri’s win highlighted that goals alone don’t necessarily win players Ballons d’Or anymore, but Kane certainly has the all-round game that should catch the voters’ eyes if he can lead the Bavarians to glory at home and on the continent in 2025.

In 2024-25: 12 goals, 13 assists. Won UEFA Super Cup & Intercontinental Cup.

After his remarkable debut season at Real Madrid, it was perhaps inevitable that Bellingham would take a backward step in 2024-25. And certainly in terms of his goal-scoring, the England midfielder struggled to hit the same heights during the opening months of the campaign as he got used to a new role following the arrival of Kylian Mbappe.

However, Bellingham now seems to have figured out how he can best contribute for Los Blancos once more, and is starting to produce in the final third while also providing the tenacious work-rate that sets him apart from some of the world’s other top players. After finishing third in 2024, another Ballon d’Or push isn’t beyond the 21-year-old this time around – as long as he avoids any furher suspensions!

In 2024-25: 18 goals, 13 assists. Won UEFA Super Cup & Intercontinental Cup.

Upon confirmation of his surprise second-placed finish in the 2024 Ballon d’Or, Vinicius swore that “the world wasn’t ready” for what is now likely to become his revenge tour. The Brazilian clearly felt that he should have been up on stage with the Golden Ball rather than Rodri, and has been attempting to stake his claim ever since.

Certainly, the Real Madrid winger looked in electric form during the first half of the campaign, and there might not be a forward anywhere in world football who can match Vinicius in full flow. However, 2025 has not got off to the best start for the former Flamengo wonderkid, and he will need to be back to his best if Madrid are to defend their La Liga and Champions League crowns.

In 2024-25: 33 goals, five assists. Won Supercopa de Espana.

After Lewandowski missed out on the Ballon d’Or shortlist in 2024, it seemed like the Pole’s long and thus far fruitless bid to pick up a Golden Ball was over. However, having been reunited with his former Bayern Munich coach Hansi Flick at Barcelona, the 36-year-old has rolled back the years to become one of Europe’s most potent No.9s once again.

Age could yet catch up with the veteran in the coming months, and there are undeniably more thrilling players to watch in his own team, never mind among Barca’s rivals, but Lewandowski has set himself up to be back in the Ballon d’Or reckoning with his fine campaign to this point.

In 2024-25: 11 goals, 18 assists. Won Supercopa de Espana.

No player has won the Ballon d’Or before their 21st birthday in the almost-70 years of the award, but right now it would be a shock if Yamal didn’t break that record given he has another three seasons to get there! There is presently no greater talent in the game than the Barcelona teenager, who, as he has shown already in 2024-25, is only going to get better and better.

He is being outscored by two of his team-mates in Catalunya, but plenty of La Liga watchers will tell you that the 17-year-old has been the most impressive player in Spain thus far this campaign. As such, the Kopa Trophy winner may well be back on stage in Paris in 12 months’ time holding an even bigger award.

In 2024-25: 27 goals, 16 assists. Won Supercopa de Espana.

There is an argument to say that Raphinha has been the best of Barcelona’s electric front-three so far this season, and his raw goal and assist numbers certainly help back that up. However, it feels like the Brazilian is playing from behind as the least-heralded of the Blaugrana’s attacking trio, and thus will likely need to post other-worldly statistics come the end of the season to prove himself Ballon d’Or-worthy.

Saying that, there is no doubt that Raphinha is playing the best football of his career right now, and there is no reason to believe that he can’t keep that up and establish himself as a serious Golden Ball contender over the remainder of the campaign.

In 2024-25: 28 goals, five assists. Won UEFA Super Cup & Intercontinental Cup.

Mbappe may not have enjoyed the start to life at Real Madrid that he or the club’s fans wanted, but he still scored his fair share of goals. Now, though, he has taken his game to another level having got used to his new surroundings in the Spanish capital, and suddenly looks like the main man for Los Blancos, with his hat-trick against Manchester City a true announcement of his arrival at the Bernabeu.

It’s no secret that Mbappe craves the Ballon d’Or given its standing in his home country; if the past few weeks are a sign of things to come, he might finally make his dreams a reality in 2025.

In 2024-25: 32 goals, 21 assists.

Salah is out of contract at Liverpool in the summer of 2025, and so if this does prove to be his final year at Anfield, then he looks set on going out with a bang. ‘The Egyptian King’ has rediscovered his best form and then some under new coach Arne Slot, and is making the Reds genuine title contenders both in the Premier League and Champions League.

Age is showing no signs of catching up with the 32-year-old, and if he can fire Liverpool to silverware come the end of the campaign, he could be the man to end Africa’s long wait for a first Ballon d’Or winner since George Weah in 1995.