A claim that French footballer Ousmane Dembele is the first black player to win the Ballon d’Or has surfaced online.
The claim was circulated online following Dembele’s win at the 2025 Men’s Ballon d’Or. A user on X @matchDcentral posted the claim with a caption :
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Ousmane Dembele is the first black player to win the Ballon d’Or
THE FINDINGS
Findings by The FactCheckHub indicate that the claim is FALSE!
The Ballon d’Or (French for “Golden Ball”) is one of football’s most prestigious individual awards, presented annually by the French magazine France Football.
It honours the player judged to have delivered the best performance over the preceding season, taking into account individual brilliance, team success, and influence on matches. Over the decades, it has evolved originally Europe-only award and later expanded to all players worldwide.
Since 2016, the winner has been decided by a panel of international journalists.
The 2025 Ballon d’Or ceremony took place on 22 September 2025 at the Théâtre du Châtelet in Paris, recognising performances in the 2024–25 season.
In the men’s category, Ousmane Dembélé of Paris Saint-Germain won the award for the first time, finishing ahead of Barcelona’s Lamine Yamal (runner-up) and Vitinha (third) in the voting.
Screenshot of the claim; Insert FALSE verdict
However, he is not the first black person to have won the award. Findings by The FactCheckHub showed that in 1965, Eusébio da Silva Ferreira, the Portuguese forward of Mozambican heritage, won the Ballon d’Or.
Also in 1995, George Weah of Liberia won the Ballon d’Or, making history as the first African player to claim the prestigious prize before Dembele’s clinch in 2025.
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THE VERDICT
The claim that Dembele is the first black player to win the Ballon d’Or is false; Eusebio of Mozambican heritage and George Weah had clinched the prestigious prize before him.
Seasoned fact-checker and researcher Fatimah Quadri has written numerous fact-checks, explainers, and media literacy pieces for The FactCheckHub in an effort to combat information disorder. She can be reached at sunmibola_q on X or fquadri@icirnigeria.org.
