The wait is finally over. Ousmane Dembélé has won the 2025 Men’s Ballon d’Or, officially recognized as the best player in the world.

The Paris Saint-Germain forward was instrumental to the club’s unprecedented success during the 2024–25 season and was rewarded with the ultimate individual prize in the sport.

Dembélé took to social media soon after winning the Ballon d’Or to share his feelings after getting his hands on the prestigious award.

“So much joy, pride and emotion,” Dembélé wrote on Instagram. “A dream come true. Thank you to everyone who has always supported me along this journey.“

Likes and comments from millions of people around the world began piling up on Dembélé’s social media post. However, one stood out above the rest, a congratulatory message from former Barcelona teammate Lionel Messi—who Dembélé thanked during his acceptance speech.

“Grande Ous [Dembélé]!" Messi wrote. “Congratulations, I’m very happy for you. You deserve it.”

Messi wasn’t the only big name player to congratulate Dembélé. France national team teammate Kylian Mbappé also posted an Instagram story and wrote, “Ousmane Dembélé. It’s the emotions my brother! You deserve it x1000.”

As Dembélé’s celebrations began in the aftermath of the 69th Ballon d’Or ceremony, more figures from across the soccer world complimented him for his achievement. Lamine Yamal, the player who came in as runner-up in the Ballon d’Or voting, was one of the first to do so.

Dembélé became the sixth French player ever to collect the Ballon d’Or award. Karim Benzema was previously the most recent French winner and the 2022 Ballon d’Or recipient also chimed in to congratulate his former teammate by sharing a photo of his success.

Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, Désiré Doué, Bradley Barcola, Achraf Hakimi and Willian Pacho were just some of Dembélé’s PSG teammates that celebrated his triumph on social media. Marcus Thuram and Real Madrid players Eduardo Camavinga and Aurélien Tchouaméni also congratulated their fellow French international.

Praise and celebratory messages will surely continue to rain down on Dembélé, who became just the 10th player in history to have won the UEFA Champions League, FIFA World Cup and Ballon d’Or.

READ THE LATEST ON THE BALLON D'OR 2025—NEWS, NOMINEES AND RANKINGS


This article was originally published on www.si.com as Lionel Messi, Kylian Mbappe Congratulate Ousmane Dembele for 2025 Ballon d’Or Triumph.

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