Vinícius Jr. (24) wasn’t even at the ceremony to accept his second place in the Ballon d’Or. The Brazilian, having led Real Madrid to the UEFA Champions League and La Liga titles, was the strong favourite to succeed Lionel Messi and win his first Ballon d’Or title.
That was until just hours before the ceremony in Paris when it emerged that both Vinícius Jr.’s entourage, as well as those within Real Madrid, were suddenly sceptical of the forward’s chances of winning. They believed that Rodri (28) would win the prize, and they were right.
Anticipating the snub, the Real Madrid delegation, including Vinícius Jr., cancelled their trip to the French capital. opting instead to remain in Spain. As a result, he wasn’t even at the ceremony to accept his second place. From Madrid, Vinícius Jr. reacted to the result.
“I’ll do it 10 times if I have to. They’re not ready,” wrote the Brazil international on X (formerly Twitter). This year’s runner-up remains in search of his first Ballon d’Or.
