Paris Saint-Germain have made history in the Ballon d’Or after becoming the first club to have 10 players included among the 30 nominees for the prestigious individual award.
The shortlist was published by the Ballon d’Or’s official press service and features an unprecedented number of representatives from the French club. According to The Touchline, no other club has previously placed as many as 10 players in the final group of 30 candidates.
The achievement gives Paris Saint-Germain a significant presence in this year’s award, with one-third of the nominees coming from the same squad. It also represents a unique milestone for the club in the history of the Ballon d’Or.
The identity of the 10 Paris Saint-Germain nominees was not detailed in the source report, but the club’s overall representation is the central feature of the announcement. The shortlist confirms that Paris Saint-Germain players are heavily involved in the race for the next award, although the final winner will be announced at the ceremony in London.
The current Ballon d’Or holder is Paris Saint-Germain forward Ousmane Dembele. Despite holding the title, however, the France international is considered to have limited chances of winning the award again this year.
Dembele’s position as the reigning winner means Paris Saint-Germain already have the current holder within their squad. The latest shortlist nevertheless places the focus on the club’s collective presence, rather than on one individual candidate alone.
The Ballon d’Or ceremony covering last season will take place in London on 26 October. It will be at that event that the next winner of the award is confirmed.
Paris Saint-Germain’s record comes after the publication of the complete 30-player shortlist, which identifies the footballers still in contention for the most prestigious individual prize in football. The club’s 10 nominees mark the largest representation by any single team in the award’s history, according to The Touchline.
With Dembele among the candidates and the club supplying nine other nominees, Paris Saint-Germain will have an unusually strong connection to this year’s ceremony. The final outcome, however, remains undecided, and the list of nominees does not by itself indicate which player will win.
The ceremony in London on 26 October will therefore provide the final decision on the award for last season. Until then, Paris Saint-Germain’s record number of shortlisted players stands as the headline achievement from the latest Ballon d’Or announcement.