Ousmane Dembélé on Ballon d'Or Criticism: "It Makes Me Laugh"
Ousmane Dembélé knows exactly what comes with the Ballon d'Or. The spotlight. The debate. The criticism. And he is not remotely interested in ducking any of it.
Since lifting the 2025 Ballon d'Or, the Paris Saint-Germain winger has been pulled apart on television panels and social media threads, his every touch re-examined through the prism of the golden trophy. For Dembélé, it has simply confirmed what he already knew about the game.
"I don't care about being criticised, it's part of the game," he told RMC, speaking in an interview with "France Football". "You will always be criticised in football, and it increases when you are the holder of the Ballon d'Or."
He knows the title changes everything. The expectations. The tone. The volume.
"I have won the biggest individual award, so I am now under the microscope more," he said. "This makes me laugh, you are constantly watched, but it doesn't bother me."
Living with the Ballon d'Or target on his back
The numbers from his first season as Ballon d'Or winner back him up. Across all competitions for Paris Saint-Germain in 2025-2026, Dembélé played 40 matches, scored 20 goals and laid on 11 assists. Not just flashes, but sustained output.
Yet he insists the award has not turned him into someone chasing headlines. It has simply hardened the demands he places on himself every time he pulls on the shirt.
"You have to be strong all the time," he explained. "You have to put in a good performance in every match, otherwise everyone will start talking about you and criticising you. This is funny, but it doesn't change anything, the criticism will always be there."
Where he does admit to a shift is in the sharp edge of his game. He believes he has become more ruthless, more present when the stakes are highest, especially in Europe.
By his own assessment, his Champions League campaign told the story. From the quarter-final second leg onwards, he scored in every match he played.
"I was clearly better in the decisive moments, and that is important," he said. "Isn't that the number one criterion?"
Those decisive nights did not come by accident. Early-season injuries forced PSG’s staff to handle him carefully, picking their moments and keeping him fresh for the spring when the Champions League defines reputations. Dembélé turned that trust into impact.
No obsession with keeping the crown
For all the attention around his status, Dembélé is not being pushed as a leading favourite to retain the Ballon d'Or. Others have stronger cases this year. The idea of seeing the trophy in someone else’s hands does not trouble him.
"This is football," he said. "The Ballon d'Or was never an obsession for me. It was a goal or a dream, yes, but it was never an obsession."
No hint of defensiveness, no attempt to lobby. Just a simple wish.
"I hope the best player wins," he added.
Kvaratskhelia, Kane, Mbappé – but not Dembélé
Asked who that “best player” is in his eyes, Dembélé did not pause. He stayed close to home, but not in the most predictable way.
His first choice: Paris Saint-Germain team-mate Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, the Georgian forward who has lit up the season with him in Paris. Dembélé’s imaginary podium is completed by England captain Harry Kane and his former PSG colleague Kylian Mbappé.
One name is conspicuously absent. His own.
Would he ever vote for himself?
"No, if I were the one choosing, I would not put myself on the list and I would not vote for myself," he replied, cutting off the question before it could linger.
It is a stance that stands in sharp contrast to Mbappé, who has openly said that if the choice were his, he would back himself in the Ballon d'Or race.
Different personalities. Different approaches to the same prize. Dembélé, already a Ballon d'Or winner, walks through the storm of scrutiny with a smile, convinced that the only real answer to the noise still lies on the pitch, in those decisive moments he now treats as his stage.
