Dear Madrid fans, I know this letter finds you in an unhappy state for obvious reasons; the embarrassing taste of defeat from the El Clasico and the alleged ‘robbery’ at the 2024 ballon d’or awards.
Well, this letter is to clarify why your darling star boy, Vinicius Jr., came second to Rodri at the awards event your team boycotted
A few hours to the awards scheme that has been in existence since 1957,
there were unconfirmed reports that Rodri had placed first ahead of Vini Jr., and this sparked a lot of controversy and arguments all over social media.
It is understandable that with the naked eye, Vinicius Jr. should be winning the award, especially after winning the Champions League and the La Liga over the 2024 calendar year.
However, the criteria for selecting the winner has shown that Rodri’s win is justifiable.
The Ballon d’or is an awards scheme where a jury of 100 international sports journalists from reputable media outlets vote. Each journalist selects their top five players, and points are allocated in this order;
1st place (6 points),
2nd place(4 points),
3rd place ( 3 points),
4th place (2 points),
5th place ( 1 point).
The player with the highest points after the votes is named the winner of the Ballon d’or.
Apart from the use of individual performance, team success, and international performance to select and vote for players, other factors like consistency, leadership, fair play, and outstanding performance in a specific position are considered.
Most importantly, the votes lie at the discretion of the journalists. They may be required to vote based on these considerations and criteria, but emotions and personal sentiment might come to play and affect a players vote and give a surprising verdict as we’ve all just seen in the 2024 awards.
It was the first time Messi or Ronaldo were not part of the nominees, and there’s so much controversy already.
Maybe it should have been Vinicius’ award, but just like every democratic election, the electorate (journalists) have spoken and have given Rodri the nod.
Better luck next year for Vinicius and Jude Bellingham.
We move…
Source: Ghana/Starrfm.com.gh/103.5FM/Jones Adzi
