Ballon d’Or 2024 LIVE! Latest updates and full results as Vinicius Jr leak leads to Real Madrid boycott

Ballon d’Or 2024 - LIVE!

Real Madrid are expected to boycott tonight’s Ballon d’Or ceremony, after reports emerged that Vinicius Junior is unlikely to win the award. The Brazilian was the firm favourite, having played a leading role in his side’s Champions League and LaLiga glory last season, but the Brazilian is set to miss out to Manchester City midfielder Rodri.

The rankings for the 30-man shortlist have started to be released, with Cole Palmer 25th and Bukayo Saka in 21st. Martin Odegaard finished highest of the four Arsenal players nominated, in 19th, while Man City star Phil Foden came in just outside the top ten in 11th.

Previous winners Aitana Bonmati and Alexia Putellas are among those nominated for the Ballon d'Or Feminin, while Manchester United duo Kobbie Mainoo and Alejandro Garnacho join Lamine Yamal in the running for the Kopa Trophy, given to the best men’s under-21 player. There are plenty other awards to be handed out too, and you can follow all the action from tonight’s ceremony with Standard Sport’s LIVE blog below!

Ballon d'Or 2024 latest news

• Start time: 7:45pm GMT | Theatre du Chatelet

• How to watch: YouTube

• Ballon d'Or shortlist

• Real Madrid to boycott ceremony

• Foden just outside of Ballon d'Or top ten

Rodri gives coy response

19:23 , Matt Verri

Unsurprisingly, Rodri is asked about the rumours that he will win the Ballon d’Or tonight.

He does well to hide the acceptance speech in his pocket.

“To be honest, I don't know anything,” Rodri says. “Let's see what happens.

"It's a pleasure to be here and to be nominated as one of the best players."

Big night for Rodri

19:16 , Matt Verri

Rodri has arrived!

The Ballon d’Or favourite on crutches, having suffered an ACL injury that will keep him out for the rest of the season.

There’s going to be a fair bit of moving up and down for him to do tonight, if the reports are correct.

Yashin Trophy shortlist

19:07 , Matt Verri

As usual, it’s a 10-man shortlist for the best goalkeeper.

Emi Martinez won it last year and he’s in the running to defend his crown. He’s the only Premier League player nominated this time.

• Diogo Costa (Portugal, Porto)

• Gianluigi Donnarumma (Italy, Paris Saint-Germain)

• Gregor Kobel (Switzerland, Borussia Dortmund)

• Andriy Lunin (Ukraine, Real Madrid)

• Mike Maignan (France, Milan)

• Giorgi Mamardashvili (Georgia, Valencia)

• Emiliano Martínez (Argentina, Aston Villa)

• Unai Simon (Spain, Athletic Club)

• Yann Sommer (Switzerland, Inter)

• Ronwen Williams (South Africa, Mamelodi Sundowns)

Kroos: Individual awards have no place in football

19:02 , Matt Verri

Toni Kroos is on the Ballon d’Or shortlist tonight.

His ranking has not yet been revealed, but he’s guaranteed to be in the top ten.

However, fair to say the award is not something that gets Kroos particularly excited.

“Rodri will win the Ballon d’Or,” he said.

“I’ve never seen the importance of these individual awards in football, they have no place.”

Going to need a bigger red carpet!

18:57 , Matt Verri

Barcelona players and staff have lined themselves up - there’s a fair few of them!

There’s a pretty decent chance it’s a successful night, with Aitana Bonmati in with a big chance of winning the Ballon d'Or Feminin again.

View from Paris...

18:51 , Matt Verri

Here’s a little look inside the Théâtre du Châtelet, thanks to the Bayern Munich camp.

Not long now until the ceremony will be getting up and running.

Nine awards to be given out tonight.

Garnacho eyes future Ballon d'Or success

18:45 , Matt Verri

Alejandro Garnacho has arrived on the red carpet.

The Manchester United winger is on the shortlist for the Kopa Trophy tonight, along with team-mate Kobbie Mainoo.

“It’s a special moment to be here with the best players in the world,” Garnacho says.

“It’s incredible. First time here, so I try to enjoy.

“I’m still young, I have many years to play and improve. Hopefully one day I can be here also for the Ballon d’Or.”

Barcelona boys are ready!

18:33 , Matt Verri

While Real Madrid seemingly boycott the ceremony, Barcelona are going to milk it for every possible bit of content...

Latest Ballon d'Or rankings

18:25 , Matt Verri

As we wait for the next set of rankings to be released, here’s a reminder of how the top 20 is looking so far:

20th: Hakan Calhanoglu, Inter and Turkey

19th: Martin Odegaard, Arsenal and Norway

18th: Emi Martinez, Aston Villa and Argentina

17th: Fede Valverde, Real Madrid and Uruguay

16th: Granit Xhaka, Bayer Leverkusen and Switzerland

15th: Nico Williams, Athletic and Spain

14th: Ademola Lookman, Atalanta and Nigeria

13th: Dani Olmo, RB Leipzig/Barcelona and Spain

12th: Florian Wirtz, Bayer Leverkusen and Germany

11th: Phil Foden, Man City and England

De La Fuente: Real Madrid absence not good

18:20 , Matt Verri

We’ve also heard from Spain boss Luis de la Fuente, who led the national side to victory at Euro 2024 in the summer.

He’s been asked about Real Madrid boycotting the ceremony, as a result of Vinicius Junior reportedly missing out on the Ballon d’Or.

De La Fuente says: “It is not good for football that a club like Real Madrid is not present at a gala of this nature.”

"It's a big honour"

18:14 , Matt Verri

Mats Hummels has been speaking on the red carpet and saying all the right things...

Foden just outside top ten

18:08 , Matt Verri

Phil Foden is ranked 11th, after playing his part in Man City winning the Premier League and England reaching the Euro 2024 final.

Bayer Leverkusen’s Florian Wirtz is just behind in 12th.

Fairly safe bet to predict that those two will be among those competing for the Ballon d’Or in the years ahead.

Red carpet time...

17:53 , Matt Verri

The famous faces are starting to arrive on the red carpet in Paris.

Djibril Cisse among the first up, and he’s wearing... a lot of material.

Ancelotti had backed Vinicius

17:48 , Matt Verri

Carlo Ancelotti has been convinced that Vinicius Junior will win the Ballon d’Or.

The Brazilian scored a hat-trick as Real Madrid came from two goals down to beat Borussia Dortmund in the Champions League last week, and Ancelotti was asked about Vinicius’ hopes of winning the award after the match.

“What I can say is that it’s rare to see a player who plays a second half like Vinicius did. And not because of the three goals but because of his character; he’s extraordinary,” Ancelotti said.

“Vinicius is going to win [the Ballon d’Or], not for what he did tonight, but for what he did last year. These three goals are already going to count for next year’s Ballon d’Or, that’s for sure.”

Former Gunners thriving

17:39 , Matt Verri

And ahead of them all are a couple of former Arsenal players.

Emi Martinez comes 18th, rewarded for his performances for Argentina and Aston Villa.

Granit Xhaka, meanwhile is 16th, having been nominated for the first time. It was a remarkable first season at Bayer Leverkusen, winning the Bundesliga without losing a single match.

Arsenal rankings finalised

17:26 , Matt Verri

Only Real Madrid have more players nominated for the men’s Ballon d’Or than Arsenal.

Four players for the Gunners made the 30-man shortlist, and it’s Martin Odegaard who has just about got the better of his team-mates.

26th - Declan Rice24th - William Saliba21st - Bukayo Saka19th - Martin Odegaard

Kopa Trophy

17:18 , Matt Verri

One of the many awards to look out for tonight is the Kopa Trophy, given to the best U21 men’s player in the game.

Two Manchester United players on the shortlist, but Lamine Yamal has to be the favourite.

• Pau Cubarsi (Spain, Barcelona)

• Alejandro Garnacho (Argentina, Manchester United)

• Arda Guler (Turkey, Real Madrid)

• Karim Konate (Ivory Coast, RB Salzburg)

• Kobbie Mainoo (England, Manchester United)

• Joao Neves (Portugal, Benfica / Paris Saint-Germain)

• Savinho (Brazil, Girona / Manchester City)

• Mathys Tel (France, Bayern Munich)

• Lamine Yamal (Spain, Barcelona)

• Warren Zaire-Emery (France, Paris Saint-Germain)

Lauren James ranked 13th

17:10 , Matt Verri

Flying through the rankings for the Ballon d'Or Feminin.

In terms of the Lionesses, it’s Lauren Hemp in 28th, Lucy Bronze 20th... and now Lauren James 13th.

The Chelsea star is only 23-year-old... she’s going to be on this shortlist for many, many years to come.

Saka ranking confirmed

17:00 , Matt Verri

Right, back to the rankings.

Antonio Rudiger next up, in 22nd, and then it’s Bukayo Saka.

The Arsenal star was nominated for the first time last year when he was ranked 24th... it’s three better for him this time.

Would have been significantly higher than that had Arsenal got over the line and won the Premier League.

The list they want to join!

16:52 , Matt Verri

Whatever happens tonight, we will get a first-time winner.

Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi are not on the shortlist, having won it 13 times between them since 2008.

Karim Benzema and Luka Modric the only ones to break that dominance, but neither of them have been nominated this time.

Bronze voices frustration

16:43 , Matt Verri

It’s one of the biggest nights in the football calendar, but many of the best players in the women’s game will not be in attendance.

That includes the likes of Lucy Bronze and Lauren Hemp, who are currently on England duty ahead of tomorrow night’s match against South Africa.

Players voiced their frustration last year that the ceremony was taking place during a women’s international break, but a change has not been made this time.

“These barriers being put up in front of us again is very frustrating,” Bronze said last week.

“And not only frustrating that it’s happened, but it obviously happened last year. And it’s like is anybody listening?

“It’s quite alarming that it’s literally a window where everybody goes all over the place. It just seems quite inconsiderate in a way.”

Dias just ahead of Saliba

16:33 , Matt Verri

William Saliba made the 30-man shortlist for the first time this season.

The Arsenal defender has established himself as one of the best centre-backs in the Premier League, if not the world. He’s ranked 24th.

Next up is Ruben Dias in 23rd - he was 30th last year. He’ll be right up there by 2027 at this rate...

England duo next up!

16:26 , Matt Verri

Moving swiftly through these rankings.

In 26th it’s Arsenal midfielder Declan Rice, who has hit the ground running in north London since arriving from West Ham.

And Cole Palmer is ranked 25th, after a sensational first season at Chelsea.

Feels like he’d be much higher on just his individual performances, but Chelsea’s struggles mean he is still a fair bit down the rankings.

First men's rankings revealed

16:18

And over on the men’s side...

Mats Hummels and Artem Dovbyk are ranked in a tie for 29th.

The pair are now team-mates at Roma, but it was their performances last season that got them shortlisted.

Hummels reached the Champions League final with Borussia Dortmund, while Dovbyk finished as top score in LaLiga for Girona.

Bayer Leverkusen’s Alejandro Grimaldo is 28th, just behind PSG midfielder Vitinha.

Rankings have begun!

16:08 , Matt Verri

Still a few hours to go until the ceremony gets underway, but the rankings for the men’s and women’s Ballon d’Or have started to be released.

Players from 30th to 21st have been confirmed for the women’s award, with England winger Lauren Hemp in 28th.

Man City team-mate Yui Hasegawa is 26th, while Chelsea striker Mayra Ramirez has come 21st in the rankings.

Busy night ahead...

16:00 , Matt Verri

Here is the list of awards to look out for throughout the night:

• Men's Ballon d'Or

• Women's Ballon d'Or

• Kopa Trophy (best player under 21 years old)

• Yashin Trophy (best goalkeeper)

• Gerd Muller Trophy (top goalscorer from 2023/24 season)

• Men's Club of the Year trophy

• Women's Club of the Year trophy

• Men's Coach of the Year

• Women's Coach of the Year

Barcelona in attendance!

15:54 , Matt Verri

Real Madrid won’t be represented in Paris tonight, but Barcelona certainly will be.

Lamine Yamal one of those who has just landed and it could be a big night for the teenager.

He is on the 30-man shortlist for the Ballon d’Or, and surely has a huge chance of winning the Kopa Trophy for the best U21 player.

Real Madrid set to skip ceremony after twist

15:44 , Matt Verri

Vinicius Junior has been the big favourite to win the Ballon d’Or tonight, a reward for his stellar performances as Real Madrid won the Champions League and LaLiga last season.

However, reports today suggest that Vinicius is in fact now set to miss out.

It’s claimed that Real Madrid have been told he will not win and are therefore not planning to attend, with Florentino Perez, Carlo Ancelotti and Jude Bellingham among those joining Vinicius in skipping the ceremony.

A dramatic late twist ahead of tonight’s event, with Rodri now the favourite.

Ballon d'Or shortlist in full

15:36 , Matt Verri

• Jude Bellingham (Real Madrid)

• Hakan Calhanoglu (Inter Milan)

• Dani Carvajal (Real Madrid)

• Ruben Dias (Manchester City)

• Artem Dovbyk (Dnipro/Girona/Roma)

• Phil Foden (Manchester City)

• Alejandro Grimaldo (Bayer Leverkusen)

• Erling Haaland (Manchester City)

• Mats Hummels (Borussia Dortmund)

• Harry Kane (Bayern Munich)

• Toni Kroos (Real Madrid)

• Ademola Lookman (Atalanta)

• Emiliano Martinez (Aston Villa)

• Lautaro Martinez (Inter Milan)

• Kylian Mbappe (PSG/Real Madrid)

• Martin Odegaard (Arsenal)

• Dani Olmo (RB Leipzig/Barcelona)

• Cole Palmer (Manchester City/Chelsea)

• Declan Rice (Arsenal)

• Rodri (Manchester City)

• Antonio Rudiger (Real Madrid)

• Bukayo Saka (Arsenal)

• William Saliba (Arsenal)

• Federico Valverde (Real Madrid)

• Vinicius Junior (Real Madrid)

• Vitinha (PSG)

• Nico Williams (Athletic Club)

• Florian Wirtz (Bayer Leverkusen)

• Granit Xhaka (Bayer Leverkusen)

• Lamine Yamal (Barcelona)

How to watch Ballon d'Or ceremony

15:28 , Matt Verri

Live stream: The ceremony will be broadcast live on L’Equipe’s YouTube channel and website.

The iconic Theatre du Chatelet in Paris hosts the award ceremony, which is due to start at 7.45pm GMT.

Live blog: You can follow all the action right here with us!

Good afternoon!

15:22 , Matt Verri

Hello and welcome to Standard Sport’s’ LIVE coverage of the 2024 Ballon d’Or ceremony!

It’s one of the biggest nights in the football calendar, as the most prestigious individual awards in the sport are handed out.

There will be a first-time winner tonight, with the likes of Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo no longer in the running.

We’ll have all the shortlists and build-up for you, ahead of the ceremony getting underway in Paris at 7:45pm GMT.