- Manchester City midfielder Rodri won the Ballon d’Or in Paris on Monday evening
- Vinicius Junior was the big favorite, but ultimately missed out on the prize
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There were protests on Monday over Vinicius Junior’s surprise Ballon d’Or nod, with the winger refusing to attend the ceremony as he believed the outcome was a foregone conclusion.
Vinicius looked the odds-on favorite to take home the prize in Paris, but Manchester City midfielder Rodri gets the better of him in a shock twist.
The development angered Real Madrid and the club’s large delegation, including numerous players and staff, boycotted the lavish ceremony.
Attendees expressed their own anger and one content creator, Luva de Pedreiro, was photographed holding up a Vinicius shirt on the red carpet.
Another blogger from the glitzy Theater du Chatelet filmed the red seats at the very front of the room, where the likes of Vinicius and Jude Bellingham would have sat.
Real Madrid striker Vinicius Junior missed out on the Ballon d’Or in a shock result
One content creator protested the insult while on the red carpet at the ceremony
Madrid boycotted the ceremony with Vinicius and Jude Bellingham chairs without tickets
However, the two seats closest to the center aisle, which were believed to be reserved for the two Madrid superstars, had their nameplates removed.
This confirmed that the two players would not be present.
Rodri was seen arriving at the ceremony on crutches before posing on the red carpet with his girlfriend Laura Iglesias.
In response to Madrid’s boycott, Ballon d’Or organizers said in a statement: “No player and no club yet knows the winner of this year’s Ballon d’Or.”
RMC reported that Madrid president Florentino Perez was furious at the decision, despite Los Blancos set to win the Club of the Year award.
Journalist Jose Luis Sanchez claimed that a 50-man Madrid group was planned, but they had to cancel the trip after discovering Vinicius would not win.
Rodri, the expected winner, arrived for the awards with his girlfriend Laura Iglesias
Bellingham was among the 50-strong Madrid side who abruptly canceled their planned trip
Madrid president Florentino Perez is said to be furious at the decision to overlook Vinicius
Sources at the club called the stupid ‘historic robbery’, say ESPN Brazil.
Marca, meanwhile, has reported that Madrid insiders have declared that ‘the Ballon d’Or no longer exists for us’.
An angry statement from Madrid to AFP read: ‘If the award criteria do not identify Vinicius as the winner, the same criteria must identify Carvajal as the winner.
‘Since this was not the case, it is clear that the Ballon d’Or-UEFA does not respect Real Madrid. And Real Madrid will not go where it is not respected.”