Ousmane Dembele made history on Monday night in Paris. The PSG forward won the 2025 Ballon d'Or, defeating Barcelona’s Lamine Yamal and Liverpool’s Mohamed Salah to claim football’s most prestigious individual award. As a result, Dembele became the first PSG player to ever win the Ballon d'Or. Moreover, he became the first Frenchman since Karim Benzema in 2018 to lift the trophy. This victory makes him the 34th player to achieve this honor. Last year, Manchester City’s Rodri took home the prize.
Beaucoup de joie, de fierté et d’émotion. Un rêve devenu réalité. Merci à tous ceux qui m’ont toujours soutenu tout au long de ce parcours. #ballondor pic.twitter.com/dLTgZXqa6d
— Ousmane Dembélé (@dembouz) September 23, 2025
Dembele’s Breakthrough 2024-25 Season
Importantly, Dembele delivered a career-best season with PSG. After years of battling injuries and inconsistency, he finally reached his full potential. Throughout the season, he played 49 matches across all competitions, scoring 33 goals and providing 15 assists, which gave him 46 total goal contributions, one of the highest in Europe. In Ligue 1, he scored 21 goals in 29 games, finishing as the joint-top scorer. Furthermore, his pressing, vision, and creativity earned widespread praise from teammates and rivals alike.
PSG’s Historic Treble
Significantly, PSG enjoyed a dominant year, winning four major trophies. The club secured the Ligue 1 title, lifted the Coupe de France, claimed the Trophée des Champions, and captured their first-ever UEFA Champions League trophy. Notably, PSG triumphed in the Champions League final with a 5-0 victory over Inter Milan. During the match, Dembele provided two assists, one for Desire Doue and another for Khvicha Kvaratskhelia. As a result, he became the first player since Marcelo to provide two assists in a Champions League final. Across the tournament, he scored eight goals and assisted six, totaling 14 goal involvements, the second-highest ever by a French player in a single Champions League season, behind Karim Benzema.
Big Moments in Crucial Games
Throughout the season, Dembele consistently delivered in key matches. He scored back-to-back hat-tricks, first against VfB Stuttgart in the Champions League and then against Brest in Ligue 1, becoming the first PSG player to score consecutive hat-tricks in official games. Additionally, he scored a vital goal in the Round of 16 second leg, helping PSG eliminate Liverpool, and also netted the winner in the semi-final first leg away at Arsenal.
A Turning Point in Dembele’s Career
Previously, injuries and inconsistency threatened to define Dembele’s career. However, the 2024-25 season marked a dramatic turning point. For the first time, he emerged as a complete player—a scorer, creator, and leader—while showing resilience and maturity under pressure. Ultimately, this Ballon d'Or win not only cements Dembele’s place among football’s elite but also solidifies PSG’s status as a European powerhouse.