4 Liverpool Players have been Shortlisted for 2025 Ballon d’Or.
Liverpool supporters have all the right to strut a little taller this week. The shortlist for the 2025 Men’s Ballon d’Or was announced, and not one, not two, but four Liverpool legends are in the running. Amid a year filled with breathtaking football and moments that will be etched forever in the memories of fans everywhere, Alexis Mac Allister, Mohamed Salah, Virgil van Dijk, and Florian Wirtz now join the ranks of the planet’s finest.
The event will be seen under Paris’s lights on Monday, September 22, as football royalty gathers to anoint the sport’s most solitary award. For these four men, the fact that they have been shortlisted is proof in itself—it’s recognition of a season of toil, wonder, and the type of football which becomes etched on the mind.
Alexis Mac Allister – The Midfield Maestro
Clinical under pressure, sharp in the mind, and gifted with a passing range that can pick out a teammate in the half-space, Alexis Mac Allister has been the heartbeat of Liverpool’s midfield this season. The World Cup-winning Argentine arrived at Anfield as one to keep an eye on, and in some way, he’s beaten expectations.
He’s the one who converts defense into attack in a single touch, the one who sets the rhythm when the team requires control, and the one who throws his body into a tackle when it gets hard. For Liverpool supporters, Mac Allister isn’t merely a midfielder—Mac Allister is the compass for the rhythm of the team. This Ballon d’Or mention is the world’s way of saying: we notice the genius as well.
Mohamed Salah – The Egyptian King
Another year, another Ballon d’Or nomination for Mohamed Salah. It’s no longer surprising at this stage and is now more of a tradition. The Egyptian striker keeps defying time, scoring and creating goals with the same ravenous appetite that first won the Kop over.
But Salah is greater than his numbers—although they in isolation are frightening. He’s the spark when a game is plodding along. He’s the grin after a goal, one that serves as a reminder he’s still enjoying himself. In a season where Liverpool struggled in every direction, Salah again bore the weight and delivered. If football were a novel, Salah would be among its finest authors.
Virgil van Dijk – The Wall at the Back
Imperious. Stately. Unmoveable. Virgil van Dijk has been the rock in the storm for Liverpool’s defense. Even while younger players develop around him, the Dutchman remains the yardstick. Opposing forwards describe him in the same way mountaineers do Everest—fearsome, immovable, and almost impossible to surmount.
His timing in the tackle, his dominance in the air, and his unobtrusive leadership have all contributed to keeping Liverpool in the hunt on all fronts. When the shortlist was announced, no one blinked when they saw his name. It’s just where he is meant to be.
Florian Wirtz – The Next Big Thing
Florian Wirtz’s presence is the story of unbridled potential awe-inspiring the footballing world. Even today, striking fear in Bayer Leverkusen kit, rumors about him have been circulating in Liverpool for months. With the nonchalance of a street player and the vision of a mature mastermind, the German playmaker reigns supreme.
His dribbles cut defenses open, his passes tee up teammates into scoring positions, and his poise is a giveaway to his age. Wirtz’s inclusion is a portent—football’s future has come early, and it’s grinning from ear to ear as wide as the Mersey.
The recipient of the Ballon d’Or will be selected by FIFA’s 100 top-ranked countries’ journalists, each voting for the 10 best players. The votes will be awarded from 15 for first place to 1 for tenth place, and at the end of the day, one name will be etched in history forever.
For the Liverpool supporters, though, it is not about who wins. It is about seeing four players, each different in their approach, story, and enchantment, pull on the jersey and play in the game’s greatest solitary stage. Regardless of what happens in Paris, the pride was already in excess on Merseyside.
