Ousmane Dembélé Responds to Ballon d'Or Criticism: "It Makes Me Laugh"

Ousmane Dembélé knew the Ballon d'Or would change his life. He just didn’t expect the noise to get this loud.

Since lifting the 2025 award, the Paris Saint-Germain winger has found himself under a far harsher spotlight. Every touch, every decision, every off day is dissected. He hears it. He just refuses to let it bite.

"I don't care about being criticised, it's part of the game," he told RMC, speaking as part of 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 understands the trade-off. The biggest individual prize in the sport brings the sharpest scrutiny.

"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."

The weight of the Ballon d'Or

The numbers from his first season as Ballon d'Or holder hardly suggest a player shrinking under pressure. Dembélé played 40 games for Paris Saint-Germain across all competitions in 2025-2026, scoring 20 goals and supplying 11 assists.

The expectations, though, have shifted. One quiet night, and the debate starts.

"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 feels the biggest leap has come is not in volume of contributions, but in timing. When it mattered most, he delivered.

In the Champions League, he scored in every game he played from the quarter-final second leg onwards, turning knockout ties into his own stage.

"I was clearly better in the decisive moments, and that is important," he said. "Isn't that the number one criterion?"

Early in the campaign, injuries forced Paris Saint-Germain’s staff to handle him with care. Fewer minutes, more management, a clear plan to keep him fresh for the biggest nights. Those nights arrived, and he answered.

No obsession with keeping the crown

For all the glare around him, Dembélé does not sound like a man clinging to his trophy.

He is not among the favourites to retain the Ballon d'Or this year. The idea of losing it, though, 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."

There is no campaign speech, no plea for votes.

"I hope the best player wins," he added.

Kvaratskhelia, Kane, Mbappé: Dembélé’s podium

Ask him who that "best player" is, and he doesn’t hesitate.

If the choice were his, Dembélé would hand the Ballon d'Or to a teammate: Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, the Georgian forward who has lit up Paris Saint-Germain alongside him.

England captain Harry Kane makes his list as well, as does his former PSG teammate Kylian Mbappé. That trio completes his personal top three.

What about himself? The answer is as direct as his dribbling.

"No, if I were the one choosing, I would not put myself on the list and I would not vote for myself."

On that point, he stands in stark contrast to Mbappé, who has openly said that if it were up to him, he would vote for himself in the Ballon d'Or race.

Different personalities. Different approaches to the same prize.

Dembélé, for now, seems content to live with the chaos that comes with being the man who already has the trophy — and to keep laughing while the world judges every step.