After four years of waiting, Alexia Putellas is once again the queen of women’s football. By receiving the Ballon d’Or for a record third time to continue Spain’s dominance of the award, the 32-year-old reinforces her status as one of the greatest players of all time. It was the sixth year in a row that the honor fell to Putellas or her international teammate, Aitana Bonmatí, and was symbolic of Putellas’ resurgence after her return from the ACL injury she suffered in her left knee in 2022, her refusal to give up her career in the face of that setback, and her majestic rise back to the top. The competition-leading midfielder’s 14 contributions (eight goals and six assists) in 11 appearances in the Women’s Champions League last season helped Barcelona lift the European title, went a long way towards securing the most votes, as well as her starring role in Spain’s victory in the Women’s Nations League final last December. His new club, the London City Lionesses, will rejoice in the prestige of having the Ballon d’Or winner in their squad, but Putellas, who spent 14 years at Barcelona, made it clear who he wanted to thank when he said in his acceptance speech: “This award is for Barcelona.” finishing second behind Putellas for the top honor and Clara Serrajordi finishing second in the young player voting. It was almost a perfect night for the European champions, until their president, Joan Laporta, spoke strangely about his belief that his men’s team could win this season’s Champions League, appearing to only have eyes for men’s football despite specifically accepting the women’s club of the year award. Women’s award for the first time in 2018. Progress has been made: women’s football now at least receives an award in the same categories as men’s, but the event still does not offer complete equality. Specifically, there is still no complete parity in the length of shortlists. Why, for example, were 10 players nominated for the men’s young talent award and only five for the women’s? The same thing happened with the awards for the goalkeepers. The live show also demonstrated a disappointing lack of current or former players presenting awards, aside from Lucy Bronze, who was on stage to present her award to Lopez. Putellas receiving the Women’s Ballon d’Or from Michael Owen, rather than Mia Hamm, Birgit Prinz or Sun Wen, perhaps served as a reminder that there are very few former winners of the women’s award for organizers to choose from (only Ada Hegerberg, Megan Rapinoe, Putellas and Bonmatí have won this trophy) because it was presented so late, in 2018. Vicky López speaks after winning the young player award. Photograph: Kin Cheung/AP Many fans will also have felt it was a shame that the dates covered by the relevant voting period (3 August 2025 to 19 July 2026, effectively for last season) were clearly based on the conclusion of this summer’s men’s World Cup and therefore did not include this year’s rearranged Wafcon, which ran from 26 July to 16 August. Performances in that tournament will count toward next year’s awards. This meant, for example, that Wafcon-winning Cameroon head coach Valentine Nguele was not nominated for the coach of the year award, and there was a general lack of recognized African players overall, apart from Temwa Chawinga becoming the first African player to finish in the top 10 women. Arguably it deserved to be even higher. Putellas was a very worthy winner of the top prize, although some will feel she is a missed opportunity for a player from one Countries least likely to succeed in major international competitions must be recognised, given that next year’s Women’s World Cup will inevitably ensure that the annual awards nights focus on what happens in Brazil. Poland’s Pajor, for example, finished second after a tremendous campaign with Barcelona, but believes she is unlikely to improve next year, simply due to her nationality. The same applies to Jamaican Khadija Shaw, who came third after leading Manchester City to their first domestic title in a decade, although the fact she finished in the top three despite not playing in the Champions League speaks volumes about how revered she is. Haiti’s Melchie Dumornay, the best player Moving the Goalposts had the pleasure of seeing live in the 2025-26 season, finished fourth. At 23 years old, his time may come in the future, but it will most likely be in an even year. Skip past the newsletter promotion Subscribe to Moving the Goals No topic is too small or too big for us to cover as we deliver a twice-weekly round-up of the wonderful world of women’s football following the newsletter promotion. A humble role model for the sport, it is a privilege to see her grace the field with her deft touches, leadership and creativity, and being a three-time Ballon d’Or winner is nothing less than what her historic career deserves. Get in touch If you have any questions or comments about any of our newsletters, please email moving.goalposts@theguardian.com. This is an excerpt from our free women’s football email, Moving the Goals. To get the full edition, visit this page and follow the instructions. Moving the Goalposts is delivered to your inboxes every Tuesday and Thursday.
