Tomorrow, 25 October, the next Clasico between Barcelona and Real Madrid will be held at the Camp Nou, but the real attraction of the weekend is the start of the Ballon d'Or ceremony at the London Palladium Theatre. On that evening, the most coveted prize in football will be awarded, and the two Catalan teams compete for the presence of their players among the main candidates: Lamine Yamal for Barcelona and Kylian Mbappé for Real Madrid.
The Ballon d'Or has not been won by a Barcelona or Real Madrid player in the last three years; the last winner was Karim Benzema in 2022. For this reason, with the arrival of new talents and the presence of stars like Kane or Messi, the next edition could represent the first time that one of the two clubs wins the award. Currently, both clubs have won the Ballon d'Or 12 times, but Real Madrid has 8 different players who have received the title, while Barcelona has 6.
Real Madrid's winners include Alfredo Di Stéfano (1957, 1959), Raymond Kopa (1958), Luka Modrić (2018), Karim Benzema (2022), Luís Figo (2000), Ronaldo (2002), Fabio Cannavaro (2006) and Cristiano Ronaldo, who has won the award four times (2013, 2014, 2016, 2017). For Barcelona, the awards were given to Luis Suárez (1960), Johan Cruyff (1973, 1974), Hristo Stoichkov (1994), Rivaldo (1999), Ronaldinho (2005) and Lionel Messi, who won the title six times (2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2015, 2019).
The discussion about the value of a Ballon d'Or "winning" club when it buys a player who won the award with another team is always open, as in the case of Cannavaro in 2006 or Ronaldo in 2002. However, based on official data, Real Madrid holds the majority of the awards with eight distinct players, while Barcelona has six.
As the Clasico and the Ballon d'Or ceremony approach, expectations are high both for the on-field rivalry and the possibility of seeing a new club add its name to the award's history. Fans of both teams will be able to enjoy a weekend of top-level football, with the hope that one of the two clubs can finally add another title to its already rich list of successes.