Mohamed Salah has finished fourth in this year’s Ballon d’Or after an extraordinary season for Liverpool, with the winger not attending the ceremony.
The annual ceremony took place in Paris on Monday evening, with Salah one of four Liverpool players named on the 30-man shortlist – although he was notably not part of the club’s contingent in the French capital.
The award is voted for by journalists, national team coaches and captains, and while not the most accurate, it is regarded as the most prestigious individual honour in the game.
And it is awarded based on three main criteria, including: individual performances, decisive and impressive character; team performances and achievements; and class and fair play.
Salah scored 34 goals and set up a further 23 across all competitions, with the 33-year-old named the Premier League, PFA and FWA Player of the Year in recognition of his stellar season.
It was not enough to see him win this year’s Ballon d’Or, though, with PSG’s Ousmane Dembele instead collecting the award after winning Ligue 1 and the Champions League, with 35 goals and 16 assists.
Mohamed Salah finishes 4th in Ballon d’Or
Mac Allister (22nd), Van Dijk (28th) and Wirtz (29th) also place
Alisson finishes runner-up in Men’s Yashin trophy to Gianluigi Donnarumma
This was Salah’s sixth nomination and his highest finish after ranking fifth in both 2019 and 2022.
It was a campaign to remember for Liverpool, with Slot guiding the club to its 20th league title in his debut season with four games to spare, with the Egyptian integral to the Reds’ success.
The last Liverpool player to win the award was Michael Owen in 2001, while Virgil van Dijk (2019) and Sadio Mane (2022) have both finished as runners-up.
Liverpool’s other 2025 nominees finished as follows: Alexis Mac Allister (22nd), Van Dijk (28th) and Florian Wirtz (29th).
PSG’s Luis Enrique, meanwhile, won Coach of the Year ahead of Slot, in a further nod to how much the Champions League sways votes.
Ballon d’Or Top 30 List
1. Ousmane Dembele
2. Lamine Yamal
3. Vitinha
4. Mohamed Salah
5. Raphinha
6. Achraf Hakimi
7. Kylian Mbappe
8. Cole Palmer
9. Gianluigi Donnarumma
10. Nuno Mendes
11. Pedri
12. Khvicha Kvaratskhelia
13. Harry Kane
14. Desire Doue
15. Viktor Gyokeres
16. Vinicius Jr.
17. Robert Lewandowski
18. Scott McTominay
19. Joao Neves
20. Lautaro Martinez
21. Serhou Guirassy
22. Alexis Mac Allister
23. Jude Bellingham
24. Fabian Ruiz
25. Denzel Dumfries
26. Erling Haaland
27. Declan Rice
28. Virgil van Dijk
29. Florian Wirtz
30. Michael Olise