Super Falcons head coach, Justine Madugu, and the team’s goalkeeper, Chiamaka Nnadozie are among the nominees for the 2025 Ballon d’Or released by the organisers yesterday.
Madugu, who led the Super Falcons to success at the Women’s Africa Cup of Nations (WAFCON) in Morocco, was nominated in the Women’s Team Coach of the Year category, while Nnadozie is listed in the Women’s Goalkeeper of the Year category.
The Super Falcons’ coach will battle with the honour against top names like the Netherlands’ Sarina Wiegman, USA’s Emma Hayes, former Canada coach Bev Priestman, and Sonia Bompastor.
Nnadozie is coming off a wonderful year at the club and national team levels. She spent last season with French Premiere Ligue club, and was a top performer for them. She recorded a 78 per cent save in the league and also helped them win the French Cup after defeating bigwigs PSG via penalty shoot-outs.
Her brilliance not just earned her a place in the league’s team of the season, but it also got her a transfer to English Women’s Super League, club Brighton and Hove Ladies.
On the international scene, the 24-year-old star has continued to stamp her authority as the undisputed number 1 for the Super Falcons.
Nnadozie will compete for the Ballon d’Or Yachine Trophy against Chelsea goalkeeper Hannah Hampton, who is fresh off winning the Euros with England, Arsenal goalie Daphne Van Domselaar, who won the Women’s Champions League with the Gunners last season, Barcelona and Spain goalkeeper Cata Coll, and Gotham FC star Ann-Katrin Berger, who won the inaugural edition of the CONCACAF Women’s Champions Cup and reached the semifinals of the Euros with Germany.
Madugu and Nnadozie’s nomination continues a positive trend for Nigeria at the Ballon d’Or. In 2023, Victor Osimhen made history by finishing in the top 10 for the men’s award – the highest ever by a Nigerian male footballer. That same year, he was also named Africa’s best male player.
This year’s Ballon d’Or nominees list is dominated by European champions, PSG, whose coach and players are among the top contenders in various categories.
PSG’s head coach, Luis Enrique was listed for the Men’s Coach of the Year award, while the Parisien’s striker, Ousmane Dembélé, is in the men’s Player of the Year race for his part in his side’s march to a first Champions League crown.
Dembélé, who will compete with seven teammates as well as France skipper Kylian Mbappé for the honour, scored eight times and set up six goals in 15 matches during a campaign that culminated in a 5-0 annihilation of Inter Milan in the final in Munich on May 30.
The 28-year-old France international also played a starring role in PSG’s second successive domestic treble – French Super Cup, Ligue 1 title and Coupe de France.
Coach Luis Enrique was listed for the coach of the year award for steering the team to four trophies. The entire squad was also in the running for the team of the year accolade.
The only blip in the club’s rampage for honours came at the end of July, when PSG went down 3-0 to Chelsea in the final at the Club World Cup in the United States.
PSG striker Désiré Doué, who bagged a brace in the Champions League final, and midfielder João Neves will vie not only for the main men’s prize but also for the Kopa Trophy presented to the best U-21 male player.
The PSG duo will compete with last year’s winner Lamine Yamal, as well as his Barcelona and Spain teammate Pau Cubarsi. Lille’s Ayyoub Bouaddi is also on the list.
PSG goalkeeper Gigi Donnarumma, who won the trophy as best goalkeeper in 2021, also made the shortlist along with the 2024 winner Emi Martinez from Aston Villa, as well as Lille’s Lucas Chevalier and Liverpool’s Alisson Becker.
Aitana Bonmati, the winner in the women’s category in 2023 and 2024, is among the 30 nominees for this year’s prize. Her club will go up against the French outfit OL Lyonnes, as well as the Champions League winners Arsenal, for the team of the year medal.
England’s European championships super-sub Michelle Agyemang features in the female category. The 19-year-old striker scored last-gasp equalisers in the quarter-finals against Sweden and in the semi-finals against Italy as her team gritted its way to retaining the title. The nomination comes a few weeks after she collected the award for best player under 21 at the tournament in Switzerland.
Under the current voting criteria, the favourite player receives 15 points, the second 12 points and the third 10 points.
Fourth choice receives eight points, fifth seven points and the sixth five points. Picks seven to nine get four, three and two points respectively. The final choice gets one point.
Journalists are asked to allocate points on the basis of individual performance, decisiveness and impact as well as players’ team performance and trophies won. They are also to assess class and fair play.
