Ousmane Dembélé Responds to Ballon d'Or Criticism: "It Makes Me Laugh"
Ousmane Dembélé knows exactly what comes with the Ballon d'Or. The spotlight. The scrutiny. The noise. And he insists none of it touches him.
Since lifting the 2025 Ballon d'Or, the France and Paris Saint-Germain forward has been hit with a wave of criticism. Some question the award, others his consistency, many his status among the game’s elite. Dembélé’s response? A smile.
"I don't care about being criticised, it's part of the game," he told RMC, speaking in an interview picked up by "France Football". "You will always be criticised in football, and it increases when you are the holder of the Ballon d'Or."
He knows the title changes everything. Every touch is judged, every decision dissected, every quiet night turned into a headline.
"I have won the biggest individual award, so I am now under the microscope more," he said. "This makes me laugh, you are constantly watched, but it doesn't bother me."
A new standard after the Ballon d'Or
The numbers show a player embracing the weight of that golden trophy rather than shrinking under it. Dembélé played 40 matches for Paris Saint-Germain across all competitions in 2025-26, scoring 20 goals and supplying 11 assists.
For him, the Ballon d'Or doesn’t just sit on a shelf. It sets a bar.
"You have to be strong all the time," he explained. "You have to put in a good performance in every match, otherwise everyone will start talking about you and criticising you. This is funny, but it doesn't change anything, the criticism will always be there."
The pressure, in his mind, is baked into the job. The award simply amplifies it.
Where he feels the difference most is in the biggest games. He points to the Champions League, where he scored in every match he played from the quarter-final second leg onwards. When the competition tightened, Dembélé sharpened.
"I was clearly better in the decisive moments, and that is important," he said. "Isn't that the number one criterion?"
Early in the season, injuries forced PSG’s staff to handle him with care, holding him back to keep him fresh for those exact moments. When it mattered most, he delivered.
Not obsessed with keeping the crown
Despite his impact, Dembélé is not considered among the leading favourites to retain the Ballon d'Or. That prospect, losing the award after one year, doesn’t trouble him either.
"This is football," he said. "The Ballon d'Or was never an obsession for me. It was a goal or a dream, yes, but it was never an obsession."
There is no campaign, no public lobbying, no personal crusade.
"I hope the best player wins," he added, stripping the debate back to its simplest form.
Kvaratskhelia, Kane and Mbappé: Dembélé’s ballot
Asked who *he* would give the prize to, Dembélé answered without hesitation. His pick comes from his own dressing room: Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, the Georgian winger who has lit up Paris Saint-Germain.
Kvaratskhelia tops his personal list. England captain Harry Kane follows, with Dembélé’s former PSG team-mate Kylian Mbappé completing his top three.
Would he ever put his own name down?
"No, if I were the one choosing, I would not put myself on the list and I would not vote for myself," he replied, cutting off the idea instantly.
It’s a stance that stands in sharp contrast to Mbappé, who has previously said that if the decision were his, he would vote for himself in the Ballon d'Or race.
Different stars, different instincts. One leans into self-belief, the other into detachment. Dembélé, for now, seems content to let the arguments rage around him while he stays where he says he’s most comfortable: under the microscope, under pressure, and still laughing.
