Arab Countries’ Votes Show Split Loyalty Between Rodri, Vinicius Jr., and Other Football Giants

The 2024 Ballon d'Or voting showed different opinions across the Arab world, with votes from 11 countries showing a close competition between Spain’s Rodri and Brazil’s Vinicius Jr. Journalists from Morocco, Algeria, and Gulf countries preferred Vinicius, while those from Tunisia, Iraq, and Palestine leaned more towards Rodri. Even though the rankings varied, Vinicius and Rodri were consistently the top choices.

Other strong candidates like Jude Bellingham, Kylian Mbappé, and Erling Haaland also received many votes, showing that Arab nations appreciate young talents. Players like Foden, Kross, and Lamine Yamal got good support too, indicating a balanced recognition of both new and well-known players in European football.

Interestingly, Syria was the only Arab country without any votes this year, leaving 99 journalists in total to make the decision. The results this year highlight Rodri’s significant win and the exciting, competitive football scene that attracted Arab audiences with their varied preferences.

Here are the votes of the representatives of the Arab countries in the 2024 Ballon d'Or:

1- Morocco: Vinicius, Carvajal, Rodri, Mbappe, Bellingham, Dani Olmo, Haaland, Nico Williams, Lookman and Lautaro Martinez.

2- Algeria: Vinicius, Haaland, Lamine Jamal, Bellingham, Mbappe, Rodri, Kroos, Foden, Carvajal and Dani Olmo.

3- Tunisia: Rodri, Bellingham, Vinicius, Valverde, Lamine Jamal, Haaland, Kane, Xhaka, Foden and Wirtz.

4- Saudi Arabia: Vinicius, Rodri, Carvajal, Bellingham, Lautaro Martinez, Mbappe, Kroos, Foden, Lamine Jamal and Haaland.

5- Egypt: Vinicius, Rodri, Bellingham, Carvajal, Mbappe, Haaland, Lautaro Martinez, Kane, Foden and Lamine Jamal.

6- Iraq: Rodri, Bellingham, Kroos, Lautaro Martinez, Lamine Jamal, Vinicius, Rudiger, Haaland, Xhaka and Saliba.

7- Bahrain: Vinicius, Mbappe, Haaland, Bellingham, Lamine Jamal, Foden, Lautaro Martinez, Xhaka, Kane and Carvajal.

8- UAE: Vinicius, Bellingham, Haaland, Mbappe, Kane, Lautaro Martinez, Lookman, Lamine Jamal, Carvajal and Kroos.

9- Palestine: Rodri, Vinicius, Bellingham, Haaland, Mbappe, Saka, Odegaard, Saliba, Neco Williams and Kane.

10- Jordan: Vinicius, Bellingham, Carvajal, Lamine Jamal, Rodri, Wirtz, Lookman, Kane, Mbappe and Dani Olmo.

11- Qatar: Vinicius, Rodri, Bellingham, Mbappe, Kroos, Carvajal, Dani Olmo, Haaland, Vitinha and Lautaro Martinez.

12- Syria: Did not vote.