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Dembélé refuses to 'sell himself' for the Ballon d'Or, Booba defends him

Ousmane Dembélé, the Ballon d'Or holder, told France Football magazine that he is not campaigning to keep his award, which will be presented on October 26. The artist Booba publicly supported his stance in what appears to be a veiled criticism of Kylian Mbappé.

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Dembélé refuses to 'sell himself' for the Ballon d'Or, Booba defends him
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Ousmane Dembélé, the Ballon d’Or holder, told France Football magazine that he is not waging any campaign to keep his award, which will be presented on October 26. His position received public backing from artist Booba.

“What argument would I give to France Football’s voting panel to convince them to vote for me for the Ballon d’Or? Ah, I have no argument. No, I don’t have one, I’ve never done this. No, I never sell myself. They decide, but I don’t sell myself,” said the Paris Saint-Germain player in the interview.

Booba reposted the video on his X account with a comment: “Respect this man and what he represents forever!” The message is read as a direct attack on Kylian Mbappé, the repeated target of the artist from Hauts-de-Seine, who is alleged to have waged an aggressive communications campaign aimed at winning the 2026 Ballon d’Or.

Among the main contenders, Spanish player Lamine Yamal and English player Harry Kane are leading the race to succeed Dembélé on the list. Mbappé comes forward as an outside candidate: since the start of his career, he has appeared on the podium only once, in 2023, the year Lionel Messi won his seventh award.

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