Weeks after Marca reported that Vinicius Jr would be the 2024 Ballon d’Or winner, rival outlet AS has claimed Rodri is still in the running.
Marca claimed in September that Vinicius, the betting favourite, had been informed of his victory and to confirm the story, sponsors Nike have already started preparing special edition golden boots in celebration.
However, Marca’s rival Madrid daily AS have now contradicted that report by claiming that Nike have also made the same golden preparations for Rodri.
Vinicius and Rodri are currently cut well clear at the top of the betting odds, but Vinicius remains far ahead.
The Brazilian won LaLiga, the Champions League, the Spanish Supercopa and the UEFA Super Cup in 2024 with Real Madrid.
‘Vini’ had an epic end to the club season, assisting twice against Manchester City in the Champions League quarter-finals before scoring twice against Bayern Munich in the semis and once more against Borussia Dortmund in the final.
However, for his country at the Copa America, he was an abject failure as Brazil crashed out early.
That allowed Rodri to sneak back in, as not only did the midfielder win the Premier League with Manchester City, he also won Euro 2024 with an unfancied Spain side.
The Ballon d’Or ceremony takes place on October 28 in Paris.
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