Real reason Real Madrid's Vinicius Jr did not win the Ballon d'Or

For a long time, it was considered a formality that Vinicius Jr would be picking up the Ballon d'Or after guiding Real Madrid to a La Liga and Champions League double last season. But there was a late twist in the tale. Rodri of Manchester City ended up winning the award, a decision that did not go down well with many in the Spanish capital.

Seemingly, nobody from Real Madrid attended the Ballon d'Or gala despite plenty of them being nominated. That is also a move that has not been received well and some have called it 'disrespectful'.

If Vinicius had won, it would have meant that six of the last seven Ballon d'Or winners were Real Madrid players at some point in their careers. The previous five are Fabio Cannavaro, Kaka, Cristiano Ronaldo, Luka Modric and Karim Benzema. The Brazilian won the award while he was at AC Milan.

Why did Vinicius not win the Ballon d'Or though despite being the heavy favourite? Well, the answer might lie in how the winner is decided.

Real reason Real Madrid's Vinicius Jr did not win the Ballon d'Or

The Ballon d'Or is decided by 100 journalists. Each journalist picks their top 10 from the 30-player shortlist and there are different point values for each. Earning the most points wins you the award.

Here is the points breakdown for each position - First: 15 points, Second: 12 points, Third: 10 points, Fourth: Eight points, Fifth: Seven points, Sixth: Five points, Seventh: Four points, Eighth: Three points, Ninth: Two points and Tenth: One point.

The issue is, there were plenty of Real Madrid players you could make a case for winning this season. Of course, Vinicius was the forefront.

But then, Dani Carvajal won the same trophies with Real Madrid and then guided Spain to glory at the EUROs. On the other hand, many might have even favoured Jude Bellingham for how brilliant he was in the 23/24 season for Los Blancos while making it to the European Championship final with England. So, the votes ended up getting shared between them.

There are always going to be journalists who favour performances at international tournaments over club competitions. Unfortunately, Vinicius failed to make an impression while wearing a Brazil jersey.

Coming to Rodri, Manchester City did not have any other outright contenders for the Ballon d'Or this season. Also, he was the best player at the EUROs as Spain won the competition. Both those factors ended up working in his favour.