Nine PSG players have been nominated for this year’s Ballon d’Or.
The Ballon d’Or awards presentation on Monday night will be held concurrently with Le Classique, therefore Paris Saint-Germain players and staff will be unable to attend.
This year’s men’s Ballon d’Or nominations include nine PSG players from last season’s treble-winning side.
Ousmane Dembele, Desire Doue, Achraf Hakimi, Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, Nuno Mendes, Joao Neves, Fabian Ruiz, and Vitinha have all been nominated for the award, along with current Manchester City custodian Gianluigi Donnarumma.
In fact, Dembele is the favourite to win football’s most coveted individual award following an outstanding 2024-25 season that included 35 goals and 16 assists across all competitions.
However, on Sunday afternoon, PSG was forced to rearrange their Ligue 1 match against Marseille from Sunday to Monday evening, which means the game will collide directly with the Ballon d’Or presentation.
According to the news, Dembele will have to pick between the two events, despite the fact that he was not named in Luis Enrique’s team to face Marseille due to injury. Desire Doue has also been ruled out.
Meanwhile, Enrique will not have such an option.
He was nominated for Men’s Coach of the Year alongside Antonio Conte, Hansi Flick, Enzo Maresca, and Arne Slot, however he will be unable to attend the presentation because he is on the Stade Velodrome touchline.
Statement confirms Le Classique postponement.
Marseille said on Sunday that their match against PSG has been rescheduled for Monday due to the forecasted storms in the region.
“Olympique de Marseille acknowledges the Bouches-du-Rhône Prefecture’s decision to postpone the OM-PSG match, which was originally planned for this evening, due to security concerns related to the region’s weather conditions.
“As announced by the Professional Football League and in compliance with its regulations, the match has been rescheduled for Monday, September 22 at 8 p.m. at the Orange Vélodrome.
“The club informs its supporters that tickets purchased for tonight’s match will remain valid for tomorrow’s rescheduled match.”
The press release continued: “Olympique de Marseille regrets that the conditions are not right to play the match this evening, both for its players, for its mobilised supporters already present, and for the full visibility of the event.”
The game was supposed to start at 20:45 local time on Sunday, but the forecast called for heavy rain, raising concerns about crowd safety. “Rainfall could reach 70 to 90mm in some areas and up to 120mm locally in a few hours,” the PACA prefect stated.
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