Sports
The 2024 Ballon d’Or nominees: Who deserves to win it? Who was unlucky to miss out?
There’s no ‘I’ in team but there is one in ‘best player in the world’ and that, one and all, is where the Ballon d’Or comes in.
Crowning the number one footballer in the world over the last year may seem like a fool’s errand given the multitude of nuances involved, but that’s what the France Football magazine has been doing since 1956 and, on Wednesday night, the nominees for the 2024 men’s award were announced.
The big names were all there (you’d think so given there are 30 players on the shortlist) and will be voted on by a group of pesky journalists before the winner is named on October 28.
So now that we know the identities of the players who could be named as the sport’s leading light — and, for the first time since 2003, that won’t be one of Lionel Messi or Cristiano Ronaldo — we can discuss who was lucky to be included, who was unlucky to miss out, and who seems nailed-on to win it.
Here, four writers from The Athletic critique this year’s Ballon d’Or nominations.
Who was the most surprising inclusion?
Ademola Lookman had the night to remember when he scored a hat-trick in the Europa League final in May. It was a campaign that also saw him help Nigeria to the Africa Cup of Nations final, scoring three goals in the process.
However, Lookman did not set the world alight across the whole season, managing just 55 per cent of Atalanta’s league minutes as he was rotated in and out of Gian Piero Gasperini’s side. His was a strong campaign, sure, but perhaps it’s a surprise to see him in the top 30 players of the year.
Mark Carey
GO DEEPER
Ademola Lookman on his Europa League heroics with Atalanta and scoring ‘for the streets’
Vitinha. A really good player, no doubt, but what have I missed? Compared with the other midfielders on the shortlist and what they achieved, it is difficult to make an argument in his favour — particularly after Portugal’s disappointing Euro 2024.
Dani Olmo is quite fortunate, too. He deserves to be considered among the best players in the world and he was exceptional in Germany over the summer, but that was form he rarely produced in the Bundesliga or Champions League during 2023-24. In fact, he only started 19 games in those competitions combined.
Seb Stafford-Bloor
Dani Olmo joined Barcelona from RB Leipzig this summer (Alex Caparros/Getty Images)
Dani Olmo had a good Euros and, while that’s important, the award is supposed to reflect the whole of last season, in which case, someone like Riccardo Calafiori, for example, is more deserving as he excelled for Bologna. As a Wolves fan, the heights Vitinha has reached still amaze me. Also, the award is supposed to take good behaviour and fair play into account, so Emi Martinez can count himself lucky (don’t @ me, Aston Villa fans, I’m just joking).
Tim Spiers
GO DEEPER
Vitinha and his curious journey from Wolves bench player to Portugal’s midfield maestro
Honestly, Emiliano Martinez. I think his year was 2022 with the World Cup, but I don’t think his season is worth a Ballon d’Or nomination. He won the Copa America and I see some justification there, but with Aston Villa, even though they had a good season, they ‘only’ qualified for the Champions League. I understand what this means for the club, but I don’t know if he deserves a nomination.
Laia Cervello Herrero
Who was the most unfortunate player to be left off?
If we’re going on pure attacking numbers, Serhou Guirassy could be disappointed that he didn’t make the list. With 28 goals (plus three assists), only six players in Europe’s top five leagues had more goal contributions than Guirassy last season — and five of them made the list (poor Ollie Watkins).
Guirassy’s rate of 1.1 goals per 90 last season was bettered by no other player in Europe. It earned him a move to Borussia Dortmund but sadly was not enough to earn him a place on this shortlist.
Mark Carey
Jamal Musiala was probably the most talented player to be left off, but how about Lukas Hradecky, the Bayer Leverkusen goalkeeper and captain? Leverkusen are well represented with Florian Wirtz, Alex Grimaldo and Granit Xhaka and all three deserve their place, but Hradecky was subtly fundamental to what Xabi Alonso’s side achieved and reached an extremely high level that, previously, many thought he was incapable of.
He was one game away from leading a team to an unbeaten domestic and continental treble, after all.
Seb Stafford-Bloor
Again, if we’re going on form over the whole year, how Mats Hummels is there and Virgil van Dijk isn’t makes little sense. Jamal Musiala was surely in the top 30 players of last season. Also, with 19 goals and 13 assists for his club, plus having won the Premier League and the Copa America, Julian Alvarez deserves a shout.
Most disappointingly of all, especially in an AFCON year, only one African player makes the list and even Ademola Lookman’s inclusion might have more to do with Atalanta than Nigeria.
Had William Troost-Ekong been named best player at the Euros rather than AFCON, he’d have been guaranteed to be on there, ditto James Rodriguez at the Copa America, but this remains a Euro-centric award almost exclusively for players based on the continent. It’s very strange not seeing Lionel Messi on there.
Tim Spiers
Call me old school or romantic, but Leo Messi. Yes, I know he’s not playing in one of the big leagues, but I find it strange to see an award he deserved every year previously without him after… 18 years? I know he has been injured for months and it has not been his best season, but he has also won the Copa America with Argentina, like Martinez.
Laia Cervello Herrero
Lionel Messi has won eight Ballons d’Or — a ninth won’t arrive this year (Buda Mendes/Getty Images)
Who will finish in the top three?
Rodri, Jude Bellingham, Vinicius Junior — in that order.
Mark Carey
Vinicius Jr, Rodri, Erling Haaland.
Seb Stafford-Bloor
Vinicius Junior hasn’t made the top three in the Ballon d’Or vote… yet (Thomas Coex/AFP via Getty Images)
It’s hard to imagine Rodri or Vinicius Jr not being up there. As for the third player, going on previous voting habits, it’s probably between Dani Carvajal, Erling Haaland, Harry Kane, Lamine Yamal, Jude Bellingham, Kylian Mbappe and maybe Lautaro Martinez. Let’s say Carvajal.
Tim Spiers
I can imagine Rodri and Vinicius Jr in the top three without a doubt and the third is probably Kylian Mbappe.
And I know many will disagree and say it is very hasty because he did not have a full season at Barcelona, but Lamine Yamal, despite his youth and the fact it is his first full season in the elite, also deserves a place because of the weight he had with Spain’s Euro 2024 champions and with a club as big as Barca at 17 years of age. His level was out of the ordinary. Maybe I’m saying this too soon, but I’ll just drop this suggestion here and go.
Laia Cervello Herrero
Who do you think will win — and who should win?
All roads lead to Rodri. He has been the most consistent, dominant, influential player for club and country in the past 12 months. He has his fingerprints on anything his team does well — in and out of possession — with a Premier League and European Championship to show for his efforts.
It is about time more midfielders won this individual trophy. No one would be more deserving.
Mark Carey
Manchester City’s Rodri — a popular choice (Michael Regan/Getty Images)
Vinicius Jr will likely win, but Rodri probably should. It does still feel as if attacking players are overprivileged, as are success and performances in the Champions League. It’s quite interesting that, despite what Manchester City have achieved in his time at the club, Rodri has never so much as made the top three. Understandable in one sense because it can be hard to price his contribution accurately, but also clearly an oversight.
Seb Stafford-Bloor
GO DEEPER
Why Rodri winning the Ballon d’Or would be both good and bad news for Manchester City
Rodri.
Tim Spiers (that’s just my name, I don’t think I should win it)
Rodri. Although there are players like Dani Carvajal who have won all the big trophies like the Champions League, La Liga and the Euros, I think Rodri — although he didn’t win the Champions League — deserves it for what he is bringing to Manchester City, one of the best sides in Europe.
His position is undervalued in the individual awards, but I think he should be the one to win, and I think he will.
Laia Cervello Herrero
The Ballon d’Or shortlist: Jude Bellingham (Real Madrid), Phil Foden (Man City), Ruben Dias (Man City), Federico Valverde (Real Madrid), Emiliano Martinez (Aston Villa), Erling Haaland (Man City), Nicolas Williams (Athletic Bilbao), Granit Xhaka (Bayer Leverkusen), Artem Dovbyk (Roma), Toni Kroos (Real Madrid), Vinicius Jr (Real Madrid), Martin Odegaard (Arsenal), Dani Olmo (Barcelona), Florian Wirtz (Bayer Leverkusen), Mats Hummels (Roma), Rodri (Man City), Declan Rice (Arsenal), Harry Kane (Bayern Munich), Cole Palmer (Chelsea), Vitinha (PSG), Dani Carvajal (Real Madrid), William Saliba (Arsenal), Lamine Yamal (Barcelona), Bukayo Saka (Arsenal), Hakan Calhanoglu (Inter Milan), Antonio Rudiger (Real Madrid), Kylian Mbappe (Real Madrid), Lautaro Martinez (Inter Milan), Ademola Lookman (Atalanta), Alex Grimaldo (Bayer Leverkusen)
(Top photos: Getty Images)
Sports
Russell Wilson announces retirement from NFL after 14 seasons
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Russell Wilson has announced his retirement from the NFL after 14 seasons, a career highlighted by a Super Bowl victory with the Seattle Seahawks.
Wilson, a 10-time Pro Bowler and the 2020 Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year, announced his retirement in a video posted to social media.
A third-round pick by the Seahawks in the 2012 NFL Draft, Wilson became one of the league’s most recognizable quarterbacks, tallying 46,966 passing yards and 353 total touchdowns during a career that also included stints with the Denver Broncos, Pittsburgh Steelers and New York Giants.
Russell Wilson of the New York Giants walks off the field following the game against the Dallas Cowboys at MetLife Stadium on Jan. 4, 2026 in East Rutherford, New Jersey. (Ishika Samant/Getty Images)
This announcement from Wilson comes after he reportedly finalized a deal to become a CBS Sports NFL analyst. When news broke of his sports media deal, it was unclear if he wished to call it quits for his playing career, or simply take a season off to think about it. But Wilson posted a lengthy video on his social media, where he reflected on his time with the game and confirmed that he would be joining CBS Sports.
“I remember the moment I fell in love with football. Waking up before sunrise with my dad and brother. Deep post routes and ‘moon balls.’ Yeah, that’s where it all began. But somewhere along the way, my love for football turned into more than just passion. It was an obsession,” Wilson narrated as clips from his childhood to college, to the NFL Scouting Combine, to his career highlights.
Wilson found quick success in the NFL after a college career that began at NC State, but flourished at Wisconsin. He went 11-5 in his first NFL season, as the Seahawks quickly became a feared squad in the NFC.
EX-NFL STAR IMPLORES RUSSELL WILSON TO HANG IT UP ‘DO YOUR TV THING’
Accompanied by the “Legion of Boom” defense in Seattle, Wilson and the Seahawks walked into MetLife Stadium for Super Bowl XLVIII and put on a rout of the Denver Broncos, 43-8, to win the Vince Lombardi Trophy. It was just the second season for Wilson, who cemented himself as the future at quarterback for Seattle under head coach Pete Carroll, who he shouted out in his video.
“To Coach Carroll, thanks for taking a chance on the young, 5’11″ black kid from Richmond, Virginia who was told he was too small to ever make it in the NFL. We knew what winning was like,” Wilson said.
Wilson wasn’t able to win the trophy again, ultimately falling to the New England Patriots in Super Bowl XLIV in heartbreaking fashion. Instead of running with Marshawn Lynch on the goal line, the Seahawks infamously chose to pass, and Wilson was picked off by Malcolm Butler to seal victory for yet another Tom Brady ring.
Seattle Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson passes during warm-ups before an NFL football game against the St. Louis Rams, Sunday, Dec. 30, 2012, in Seattle. (AP Photo/Elaine Thompson)
In 10 seasons with Seattle, Wilson had 37,059 passing yards with 292 touchdowns and a 104-53-1 overall record. Wilson told Seattle fans, “You raised me,” in his video.
It wasn’t as sweet for Wilson once he was traded to the Broncos before the start of the 2022 season, as he started to face some serious adversity and public rifts with head coach Sean Payton. Wilson went 4-11 in his inaugural season with Denver, and after going 7-8 in 2023, the team moved on despite his massive contract looming.
As a result, Wilson took a veteran minimum deal to join Mike Tomlin and the Steelers during the 2024 campaign. He went 6-5 in his starts, earning his 10th and final Pro Bowl bid. The Steelers made the playoffs, but didn’t make it out of the Wild Card Round.
Finally, the Giants signed Wilson before the start of the 2025 season, though they drafted Jaxson Dart out of Ole Miss to be his successor. That quickly changed after just three starts for Wilson, as Dart took over in Week 4 against the Los Angeles Chargers. Wilson never regained the starting role, though he was as classy as ever, talking about his mentorship of Dart.
Throughout the years, Wilson enjoyed working with every coach, teammate and the fans of each franchise across his football journey.
New York Giants quarterback Russell Wilson waves to fans after the game against the Dallas Cowboys at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, N.J., on Jan. 4, 2026. (Vincent Carchietta/Imagn Images)
“To every teammate I’ve had the privilege of sharing the locker room with, thank you for the sacrifices, the brotherhood, the memories. None of this is possible without you,” he said.
“To every fan who supported, through the highs and the lows, your belief, your energy and your passion meant more than you’ll ever know.”
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Sports
‘SNL’ star Marcello Hernández to host 2026 ESPYs as show leaves L.A. for New York
Comedian and “Saturday Night Live” standout Marcello Hernández will host this year’s ESPY Awards, ESPN announced Wednesday.
The event, honoring excellence in sports performance, will be broadcast live on ABC and the ESPN app from the David H. Koch Theater at Lincoln Center on July 15, making it the first ESPYs in New York City since 1999. For the last 25 years, the awards ceremony was held in Los Angeles.
“I started doing comedy 10 years ago, in Cleveland, Ohio, and I would take the train 12 hours to New York to sell comedy tickets on the street in Greenwich Village in exchange for stage time,” Hernández said in a statement. “It is an honor, and frankly feels crazy to be hosting the ESPYs this year in New York. I’m sure the energy is going to be great.”
Hernández recently headlined the biggest Spanish-language comedy show ever at the Hollywood Bowl as part of the Netflix Is a Joke Festival in May, and wrapped up his fourth season of “SNL” soon after. His first stand-up special, “American Boy,” premiered on Netflix in January.
He’s also a sports enthusiast, having grown up playing soccer and competing at the collegiate level during his time at John Carroll University in Ohio.
“Marcello is one of the most electric, young comedians today. His genuine enthusiasm for sports and his ties to New York City make him a natural fit to host this year’s ESPYs,” Craig Lazarus, ESPN vice president and executive producer of the ESPYs, said in a statement.
Hernández succeeds last year’s emcee, comedian Shane Gillis, as well as past hosts that include Jimmy Kimmel, John Cena, LeBron James and Peyton Manning.
In January, Puck reported that the change in venue is an effort to capitalize on the popularity of Fanatics Fest, the massive sports festival taking place in New York’s Javits Center from July 16-19, which also coincides with the World Cup final on July 19 at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey.
“This return to the heart of Manhattan brings the celebration of sports back to its roots for an unforgettable night at an iconic cultural landmark,” an ESPN spokesperson said in a statement.
Sports
AJ Brown trade outcome: Dianna Russini paid a heavy price while Mike Vrabel emerged unscathed
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Mike Vrabel and A.J. Brown were winning on Tuesday because the long-rumored trade that reunited them was finally complete. Brown was free of his recent unhappiness with the Philadelphia Eagles, while Vrabel spoke easily and smartly about how his Super Bowl team was getting better.
It was one lovely victory lap for everybody.
Except for Dianna Russini.
New England Patriots head coach Mike Vrabel celebrates after the AFC championship game against the Denver Broncos at Empower Field At Mile High in Denver, Colo., on Jan. 25, 2026. (Cooper Neill/Getty Images)
MIKE VRABEL BREAKS HIS SILENCE ON DIANNA RUSSINI CONTROVERSY
Yes, this is about her as much as Vrabel and Brown. Those three names will be linked for a long time in NFL circles based on what happened going back as far as September of 2025, and then definitely through this offseason that was about, well, the relationship between the coach and the reporter.
If you aren’t up to speed on that relationship, you’ve got homework. And you will probably catch up easily because the reference material is everywhere — the photos of Russini and Vrabel together, the denials of anything untoward between two married people, the collapse of the professional friendship narrative, and everything after.
So, to the uninitiated, you’re excused. Go now and read the soap opera’s opening chapters. Because this might be the saga’s end, barring a major surprise.
And let me cut to that end:
Philadelphia Eagles wide receiver A.J. Brown walks on the field during an NFL training camp in Philadelphia on July 29, 2025. (Matt Rourke/AP Photo)
Brown wins. He’s wholly unscathed, in fact, and happy as a clam with a new team he grew up adoring.
Vrabel wins, too. Yes, he took some lumps, suffered some humiliating moments in front of reporters and had some family conversations he termed “very difficult,” but he’s ultimately none the worse for wear.
And then there’s Russini. She lost. Big time.
FORMER NFL REPORTER MICHELE TAFOYA WEIGHS IN ON WHY RUSSINI’S CREDIBILITY IS GONE
It was saddening to watch Vrabel’s presser because it was Russini who first reported teams were calling the Eagles about Brown back in September of 2025. She first reported the Eagles weren’t interested in trading Brown.
Russini called it when she told everyone the Patriots were interested (so were the Los Angeles Rams, by the way). And she was right again when she said earlier this year that Brown wouldn’t be traded around the start of the league year in March but watch out for June.
She was dead-on accurate with practically all of it.
Dianna Russini, left, and Mike Vrabel, right, are shown in a split composite image featuring Russini with an ESPN microphone and Vrabel on the Titans sideline wearing a headset. (Imagn Images)
But everyone has surmised all that information came out of her relationship with Vrabel. All that insider work came from other alleged inside work.
Russini’s information was great but how she seemingly attained it eventually led to her resigning from The Athletic. And sullying her professional reputation.
Losses.
MIKE VRABEL STEPS AWAY INDEFINITELY TO SEEK COUNSELING
Vrabel? He seemed just fine on Tuesday.
About the hardest thing he had to do was answer a question about Brown’s obvious displeasure last year in Philly.
“I don’t know what happened,” Vrabel said. “I’m not trying to figure out what happened in Philadelphia. I’m trying to focus on what’s going to happen here and trying to get him acclimated to what we do and how we do it.”
Vrabel, during this press conference, congratulated a reporter for winning a marathon. He thanked Executive Vice President for Player Personnel Eliot Wolf for making the trade happen. And he took a bunch of football questions.
Dianna Russini attends the 2026 Fanatics Super Bowl Party at Pier 48 in San Francisco, California, on Feb. 7, 2026. (Cindy Ord/Getty Images)
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There was not one question about whether he indeed for months leaked to Russini details of where the Patriots and Eagles talks were. Not one question about how his family “counseling” sessions are going or if his marriage is certain to survive.
There was nothing uncomfortable because it seems the local media lost interest or its curiosity on a day the story that Russini beat them on for months was laid bare before them.
And, the thing is, if Vrabel didn’t have to sweat this occasion, he’s probably in the clear. He’s not likely to get tough questions about the whole affair (pardon the pun) again unless more facts come out that raise the issue from the grave.
So, yeah, Mike Vrabel has survived. He’s won.
FOLLOW ARMANDO SALGUERO ON X: @ARMANDOSALGUERO
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