La Liga President: Yamal Doesn't Win Ballon D'Or Because Of Age

JAKARTA - La Liga president Javier Tebas believes Lamine Yamal will not win the 2025 Ballon d'Or because of his age.

However, he believes the Barcelona star will soon win the award in the coming year.

Yamal, who turned 18 in July 2025, was in second place after Paris Saint-Germain striker Ousmane Dembele voted for the 2025 Ballon d'Or on Monday, September 22, 2025, Paris time.

The Barcelona forward and the Spanish National Team did make history by becoming the only winner of the Kopa Trophy (Kopa Trophies) several times, an award given to the best player under the age of 21.

"If he is over 23 years old, he will also definitely win it, I'm sure. Because he is younger, they gave him another (Trofi Kopa)," Tebas said referring to the Yamal and the Ballon d'Or results.

Unlike Tebas, Barcelona president Joan Laporta believes the Champions League is a determining factor in the fight for the Ballon d'Or.

Dembele, 28, scored 35 goals in 53 appearances in all competitions for PSG, a treble-winning team, who also won Ligue 1 and Couple de France, as well as their first Champions League trophy.

Meanwhile, Yamal scored 18 goals in 55 games in all last season as Barcelona won La Liga, the Spanish Super Cup and Copa del Rey, but lost in the semi-finals of the Champions League to Inter Milan.

When he received the Kopa Trophy, he said on Monday that he must continue to work hard to win other awards in the future.

Yamal has broken many records since his Barcelona debut at the age of 16, including being the youngest goalscorer in La Liga history and the youngest player to ever appear at the Euros.

He won the Tournament Young Player of the Year award at Euro 2024 after helping Spain win the title.

Seeing this work, Tebas also believes Yamal will raise the Ballon d'Or in the near future.

"If he continues to play at his current level, which seems possible, I don't think there's any doubt he will win the Ballon d'Or," he said.