Can Dembele Break the Curse and Win the World Cup After Ballon d'Or Glory?🔥

On September 22, 2025, Ousmane Dembele entered the pantheon of French football legends by becoming the sixth player from the country to win the Ballon d'Or. He followed iconic figures such as Raymond Kopa, Michel Platini, Jean-Pierre Papin, Zinedine Zidane, and Karim Benzema in claiming the sport's highest individual honor.

Dembele's award was well-earned after an exceptional season. Luis Enrique transformed him into a false nine, and Dembele responded by scoring 35 goals and setting up 15 assists. He was instrumental in PSG's unprecedented haul of Ligue 1, the Coupe de France, and the club's first-ever Champions League title.

A year on, PSG successfully defended their European crown in Budapest against Arsenal. Despite battling injuries, Dembele performed when it mattered most, netting 8 goals and providing 2 assists in 13 Champions League fixtures. He now approaches the World Cup as one of France’s key players, brimming with confidence.

Yet, history casts a shadow over his quest. No Ballon d'Or winner has ever lifted the World Cup immediately following their win—a curse that has plagued football’s greatest names.

Since the award's inception in 1956, there have been seventeen World Cups. Of those, three editions saw reigning Ballon d'Or winners absent from the tournament: Alfredo Di Stefano in 1958 (Spain didn’t qualify), Allan Simonsen in 1978 (Denmark failed to qualify), and Karim Benzema in 2022, who had to pull out due to injury despite winning the Ballon d'Or weeks earlier.

Several Ballon d'Or holders have suffered early exits or heartbreak on football’s biggest stage:

• Omar Sivori exited in the first round at the 1962 World Cup with Italy.
• Cristiano Ronaldo was knocked out in the 2014 group stages and again in the 2018 Round of 16.
• Marco van Basten's Dutch side went out in the 1990 Round of 16 despite his club success.
• Michael Owen’s England fell in 2002 quarter-finals following Ronaldinho’s stunning free-kick.
• Ronaldinho’s Brazil bowed out in the 2006 quarters to a French side led by Zidane.
• Lionel Messi’s Argentina suffered a heavy quarter-final defeat against Germany in 2010.

Others came tantalizingly close but never claimed the Cup right after their Ballon d'Or win:

• Eusebio led Portugal to the 1966 semi-finals.
• Michel Platini’s France reached the 1986 semi-finals.
• Gianni Rivera’s Italy lost the 1970 final.
• Johan Cruyff’s Netherlands fell short in the 1974 final.
• Karl-Heinz Rummenigge’s West Germany lost the 1982 final.
• Roberto Baggio’s missed penalty haunted Italy in the 1994 final.
• Ronaldo, the 1997 winner, dazzled in 1998 but was a shadow in the final.

Dembele now stands poised to rewrite this narrative. With France among the favourites, the 2026 World Cup offers him a chance to shatter the Ballon d’Or curse and finally follow his predecessors’ footsteps all the way to football’s ultimate glory.