People online are trying to decode a clue in a Ballon d’Or ceremony advertisement before France Football crowns soccer’s best men’s player at the London Palladium Theatre. Numbers appear in a ring around the Ballon d’Or award in the background of the image.
Code claim from Loïc Tanzi
SI said L’Équipe journalist Loïc Tanzi revealed that a recent advertisement for the ceremony has hidden numbers that reveal the winner. Tanzi wrote on X: "Look closely at the numbers. There is a code to decipher to find out the winner. Very difficult level but not unplayable."
Favorites mentioned by SI
SI referred to Harry Kane, Lamine Yamal and Kylian Mbappé as the three aforementioned favorites.
Online theories on the winner
SI said one user turned to AI to solve the riddle and that it claimed Kane will win the prize in London. SI said another user compiled evidence that points to Mbappé taking home the Ballon d’Or.
One user said: "There are two 0s like the number of blank years Mbappé's had at Real, I think, so Mbappé’s gonna steal this Ballon d’Or." SI said one user believed the number two means Ousmane Dembélé will go back-to-back, while another user joked that Ronald Araújo would win the award.