Ousmane Dembélé was crowned the men's Ballon d'Or winner at a glittering ceremony in Paris, reflecting both Paris Saint-Germain's Champions League triumph and his own remarkable form since Christmas. The French forward, who overcame a difficult period at Barcelona, scored 25 goals in 20 games after being moved into a central role by manager Luis Enrique, culminating in a dominant performance in the Champions League final against Inter in May.
In the women's award, Aitana Bonmatí claimed the Ballon d'Or for the third successive year, despite finishing on the losing side in the finals of both the European Championship and the Champions League. She saw off competition from Alessia Russo, who came third, and her Arsenal teammate Mariona Caldentey.
English football enjoyed a strong night as Sarina Wiegman won the Johan Cruyff award for best female coach, using her speech to call for vigilance against misogyny and racism. Hannah Hampton of Chelsea and England won the inaugural women's Yashin Trophy for goalkeeper of the year, paying an emotional tribute to the late Matt Beard. Arsenal were named club of the year, prompting scattered boos from the Parisian crowd.
Other winners included Lamine Yamal, who retained the men's Kopa trophy for best young player, Gianluigi Donnarumma, who won the men's Yashin Trophy, and Viktor Gyökeres, who claimed the Gerd Müller trophy as the highest-scoring men's player. Dembélé's victory was hailed as a triumph not only for PSG but also for French football.
