Ousmane Dembele and Aitana Bonmati were crowned the best men’s and women’s player in the world at the 2025 Ballon d’Or ceremony in Paris.
Dembele, the Paris Saint-Germain and France forward, took the men’s prize after leading his club to a treble-winning season and their first Champions League success. Barcelona’s Lamine Yamal,18, was runner-up after being voted the best young player.
A tearful Dembele collected the prize in Paris with a partisan crowd that chanted his name. If not for injury, he would have been playing for PSG in Marseille in a rearrange league fixture.
Barcelona and Spain midfielder Bonmati becomes the first player to win the women’s Ballon d’Or for three consecutive years. Lionel Messi and Michel Platini are the only men to have achieved that feat.
Image: Aitana Bonmati is the first player to win the Women’s Ballon d’Or three years running
“It’s incredible this feeling. I never thought when I was a kid that I could achieve this because I didn’t think women’s football can exist,” Bonmati said.
“I had idols like Andres Iniesta and Xavi and when I was a kid I only saw them on TV. It’s incredible to be here and make history.
“But all of these trophies are because of collective work. We had a difficult season because we won some trophies, but we also lost some to amazing footballers.”
Arsenal and England’s Alessia Russo got the better of Bonmati in the Champions League and Euros finals, but finished third in the women’s rankings. Her club-mate, Mariona Caldentey of Spain, came second.
Lionesses head coach Sarina Wiegman was named best women’s coach after England’s triumph over Spain in Switzerland, while PSG boss Luis Enrique picked up the men’s Johan Cruyff award.
Image: Lionesses coach Sarina Wiegman accepts her award for best women’s coach
Image: Hannah Hampton picked up the first women’s Yachin trophy after six years of the men’s award
England’s Hannah Hampton won the award for best women’s keeper, with Man City’s Gianluigi Donnarumma picking up the men’s prize for his season with PSG.
Arsenal and PSG won the awards for women’s and men’s club of the year after their Champions League successes.
Full list of the winners
Image: Viktor Gyokeres won the men’s Gerd Muller Award for most goals for club and country
The Irishman returned to the Octagon for the first time in five years in Las Vegas, Nevada, though, the long-awaited fight with Holloway couldn’t have ended more abruptly and more disappointingly.
McGregor opened the fight up with a jumping switch kick. It’s fairly normal for him to begin proceedings with a flashy kick, only this time he buckled to the floor, with his knees unable to withstand the pressure.
In the aftermath of the fight, there was plenty of speculation regarding what happened, with Sutterer now posing more questions since seeing what McGregor has been doing following the injury.
Doctor Has Suspicions About Conor McGregor’s Injury
Credit: Mark J. Rebilas via Imagn Images
In the immediate aftermath of the fight at UFC 329, Sutterer gave his thoughts on the possible injury, saying: “So, actually seeing all this, my first thought would be a meniscus tear, specifically that lateral meniscus because of him grabbing on the outside of his knee.”
There was also speculation about whether or not McGregor was injured prior. He seemed fairly cautious at both the ceremonial weigh-ins and on the cage walk. However, the Irishman has since said that he wasn’t hindered in the lead-up.
Reflecting on the situation, Sutterer has now touched on the recovery and McGregor’s possible journey back to the Octagon, and he’s made an eye-opening claim about what the fighter has been doing in the aftermath.
“Starting to wonder what’s going on with Conor McGregor’s ACL tear. He’s posting a lot of pretty intense, knee-loading workout videos and seems to have great range of motion and function. If the plan is a return for IFW 2027, and he truly has a complete ACL tear, he needs to get that surgery done, and I’m surprised he hasn’t had it yet based on what’s been reported.”
Conor McGregor’s Future in UFC
With the anticlimactic ending of UFC 329, there’s no surprise that McGregor is eager to redeem himself. As Sutterer touched on, he’s been active on social media, posting some clips from his recovery.
In one of his posts, he talked about what may have led to the injury, and the intention of being back for next year.
“The white, orange and green machine, mosying on back to the office, up the office! Sorry I’m late, but the dry ice has the cage floor wet. It’s a no-contest now chop chop for the champ champ. I’ll see ya’s next year 100%.”
A trilogy fight with Holloway could be on the table. The Hawaiian fighter didn’t shut down the possible contest, saying: “He was talking about this 170 domain, he was talking about this different world. I wanna feel it. I’m down to come back in 2027.”
Both fighters seem to be looking for a return in 2027, so perhaps that could be the way forward.
Roberto De Zerbi has revealed that another signing at Tottenham Hotspur is imminent, with the club set to continue their busy start to the transfer window.
The Lilywhites have already added a number of players to their ranks, spending around £237 million in the process. Sandro Tonali has arrived from Newcastle United for £100 million, Mateus Fernandes has joined from West Ham for £85 million, while Jan Paul van Hecke was acquired from Brighton for £52 million.
On top of this, Martin Dubravka, Marcos Senesi and Andy Robertson have all signed on free transfers.
The attention now turns to strengthening the attack, and De Zerbi has told Spurs journalist Alasdair Gold that a new arrival is imminent.
New Tottenham Signing Imminent
Reuters/Andrew Couldridge
Tottenham have been heavily linked with Manchester City’s Savinho, although De Zerbi has hinted that another big signing could be N17-bound before the Brazilian.
“In the transfer market, when I want one player, I become like a shark, No chance to say no!” he told Football.London.
“The transfer market, it’s not finished for sure, but we completed 60% of our project in the transfer market. Now we have another bomba!”
Further details have been released regarding Anthony Smith’s arrest, as the former UFC fighter faces a trio of felonies, including ‘reportedly threatening to kill’ his wife.
Smith retired from mixed martial arts in 2025 after being defeated by Zhang Mingyang. Since then, however, he has also moved into the bare-knuckle space, with a fight against Chase Sherman in Jorge Masvidal‘s Gamebred MMA promotion.
Despite trying to stay active, Smith is now embroiled in this case and facing serious charges. He was arrested in Sarpy County, Nebraska, on Monday, and the full details of the situation and arrest have now emerged.
Statement Further Explains Anthony Smith’s Arrest
The 38-year-old faces a trio of felonies, which include attempted first-degree domestic assault, terroristic threats, and first-degree false imprisonment. Despite being arrested on Monday, he was released on a $500,000 bond.
With the bond agreement, Smith was also ordered to stay away from his wife and have no contact with her while the trial is still pending.
During the bond hearing, more information was revealed by a prosecutor from the Sarpy County Attorney’s Office.
The statement said: “It is alleged that on July 26, 2026, the defendant was involved in an altercation with his wife at a bar in Gretna, Neb, during which he reportedly threatened to kill her if she did not get into his vehicle and go home with him.”
They then added that the confrontation became physical.
“He is further accused of grabbing and pushing her inside the vehicle. At one point, during the drive, she was able to exit the vehicle. The defendant allegedly continued making threats, demanding that she get back inside the vehicle.
“After arriving home, she again exited the vehicle. Investigators allege that the defendant attempted multiple times to use the vehicle to strike her. The defendant’s wife was able to get out of the way and avoid any physical harm.”
Smith eventually turned himself into authorities after an arrest warrant was issued. He is next scheduled to appear in district court on the 17th of August.
