‘It was unfair’ – Cristiano Ronaldo claims Vinícius Jr. should have beaten Rodri to Ballon d’Or | OneFootball

Real Madrid legend Cristiano Ronaldo has late this week revealed his take that current Blancos star Vinícius Jr. was deserving of the recent Ballon d’Or award.

Wide-man Vinícius, of course, was pipped to the latest ‘Golden Ball’ back in October.

Despite long-standing reports in the media that the Brazilian international was a shoo-in for the prize, it was Manchester City midfielder Rodri’s efforts which were ultimately recognised.

The result of the vote gave rise to a public backlash from across the football landscape, as players, fans and pundits alike made clear their feelings that Vinícius should have emerged triumphant.

And, as alluded to above, on Friday, such figures have been joined in their stance by none other than Cristiano Ronaldo.

No stranger to the Ballon d’Or having himself scooped the accolade on five separate occasions, frontman Ronaldo was asked for his take on the 2024 result during an appearance at the Globe Soccer Awards.

And the Portuguese veteran was not shy in confirming his opinion that Vinícius should have been crowned world football’s best player:

“Vini did a fantastic job and in my opinion, he deserved to win the Ballon D’Or. It was unfair. I’m saying it in front of everybody. They gave it to Rodri, he deserved it too, but I think they should’ve given it to Vini because he won the Champions League and scored in the final. When it is deserved, you should give it to the one who deserves it. This is why I love Globe Soccer. Continue to do this gala because it’s an honest award and it’s very good.”

Conor Laird – GSFN