Ballon d’Or 2024: Rodri wins, but Africa voted for Vinicius

The suspense and, above all, the tension were palpable at this 2024 Ballon d'Or, which was ultimately defined by a tight margin between Rodri, the eventual winner, and Vinicius, his main rival. With 1170 points, the Spaniard finished just 41 ahead of the Brazilian, a result that rankled with supporters of the Real Madrid player. His club had even snubbed the ceremony at the last minute, apparently realising he would not win. The slim gap between the two finalists only reignited the debate, and in Africa the mood was clearly in Vinicius's favour.

12 countries out of 22 for Vinicius, 6 for Rodri

The magazine France Football released the full breakdown of the jury's votes on Saturday, in keeping with its usual practice of transparency. Of the 22 African journalists who took part in the vote (the top 100 nations in the FIFA rankings were eligible to vote), 12 put Vinicius first, underlining a clear preference for the Brazilian forward. Algeria, Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Cape Verde, Egypt, Guinea, Equatorial Guinea, Mali, Morocco, DR Congo and Senegal had all opted to back the Real Madrid player. By contrast, only six African journalists gave their first place to Rodri, confirming a geographical divide in how the favourites were seen.

Read also : Ballon d’Or 2024: after the controversy, Rodri wins ahead of Vinicius

Meanwhile, Ademola Lookman, the only African player in contention for this edition of the Ballon d'Or, finished 14th. Although he was not among the leading names, 13 African countries chose to include him in their votes, often towards the bottom of their top 10, showing symbolic support for the Atalanta Bergamo winger. Nigeria were the most patriotic, putting Lookman at the top of their list, while Côte d'Ivoire gave him a respectable 5th place. It was further evidence of African journalists' attachment to their local talents, even when up against international stars.

African votes at the 2024 Ballon d'Or

• South Africa

1. Rodri
2. Vinicius Jr.
3. Haaland
4. Yamal
5. L. Martinez
6. Carvajal
7. Bellingham
8. Lookman
9. N. Williams
10. Foden

• Algeria

1. Vinicius Jr.
2. Haaland
3. Yamal
4. Bellingham
5. Mbappé
6. Rodri
7. Kroos
8. Foden
9. Carvajal
10. Olmo

• Angola

1. Carvajal
2. Bellingham
3. Vinicius Jr.
4. Rodri
5. Foden
6. L. Martinez
7. Kroos
8. Mbappé
9. Kane
10. Haaland

• Benin

1. Vinicius Jr
2. Bellingham
3. Rodri
4. Carvajal
5. Mbappé
6. Kroos
7. L. Martinez
8. Kane
9. Haaland
10. Yamal

• Burkina Faso

1. Vinicius Jr.
2. Rodri
3. Bellingham
4. Carvajal
5. L. Martinez
6. Yamal
7. Kane
8. Mbappé
9. Kroos
10. Lookman

• Cameroon

1. Vinicius Jr.
2. Bellingham
3. Rodri
4. Carvajal
5. Mbappé
6. Valverde
7. Lookman
8. Kane
9. Ödegaard
10. Yamal

• Cape Verde

1. Vinicius Jr.
2. Bellingham
3. Mbappé
4. Haaland
5. Rodri
6. Kroos
7. Foden
8. Ödegaard
9. Valverde
10. Olmo

• Côte d'Ivoire

1. Mbappé
2. Vinicius Jr.
3. Rodri
4. Bellingham
5. Lookman
6. Olmo
7. Yamal
8. N. Williams
9. Haaland
10. L. Martinez

• Egypt

1. Vinicius Jr.
2. Rodri
3. Bellingham
4. Carvajal
5. Mbappé
6. Haaland
7. L. Martinez
8. Kane
9. Foden
10. Yamal

• Gabon

1. Rodri
2. Carvajal
3. L. Martinez
4. Vinicius Jr.
5. Bellingham
6. Kroos
7. Lookman
8. Haaland
9. Mbappé
10. Wirtz

• Ghana

1. Rodri
2. Vinicius Jr.
3. Haaland
4. Bellingham
5. Yamal
6. Carvajal
7. Kroos
8. Lookman
9. Mbappé
10. Foden

• Guinea

1. Vinicius Jr.
2. Bellingham
3. Haaland
4. Mbappé
5. Valverde
6. Rodri
7. Kroos
8. Saka
9. Carvajal
10. Wirtz

• Equatorial Guinea

1. Vinicius Jr.
2. N. Williams
3. Rodri
4. Bellingham
5. Carvajal
6. Haaland
7. Lookman
8. Yamal
9. Olmo
10. Ruben Dias

• Mali

1. Vinicius Jr.
2. Rodri
3. Haaland
4. Mbappé
5. E. Martinez
6. Bellingham
7. Foden
8. Yamal
9. Lookman
10. Valverde

• Morocco

1. Vinicius Jr.
2. Carvajal
3. Rodri
4. Mbappé
5. Bellingham
6. Olmo
7. Haaland
8. N. Williams
9. Lookman
10. L. Martinez

• Namibia

1. Bellingham
2. Rodri
3. Yamal
4. L. Martinez
5. Xhaka
6. Mbappé
7. Carvajal
8. Kroos
9. Kane
10. Haaland

• Nigeria

1. Lookman
2. Vinicius Jr.
3. Bellingham
4. Rodri
5. Foden
6. Haaland
7. N. Williams
8. Olmo
9. Kane
10. Rüdiger

• Uganda

1. Rodri
2. Bellingham
3. Carvajal
4. L. Martinez
5. Kane
6. Mbappé
7. Haaland
8. Vinicius Jr.
9. Foden
10. Lookman

• DR Congo

1. Vinicius Jr.
2. Bellingham
3. Carvajal
4. Kroos
5. Kane
6. Rodri
7. Valverde
8. L. Martinez
9. N. Williams
10. Mbappé

• Senegal

1. Vinicius Jr.
2. Bellingham
3. Rodri
4. Carvajal
5. Foden
6. L. Martinez
7. Yamal
8. Haaland
9. Wirtz
10. Lookman

• Tunisia

1. Rodri
2. Bellingham
3. Vinicius Jr.
4. Valverde
5. Yamal
6. Haaland
7. Kane
8. Xhaka
9. Foden
10. Wirtz

• Zambia

1. Rodri
2. Vinicius Jr.
3. Bellingham
4. Mbappé
5. Kane
6. N. Williams
7. Carvajal
8. L. Martinez
9. Olmo
10. Lookman

Malick BAMBA