Women’s Ballon d’Or contenders and prediction with Arsenal stars among the favourites to win the award | OneFootball

(Photo by FRANCK FIFE/AFP via Getty Images)

Ahead of the Ballon d’Or awards on Monday night, SheKicks lists the contenders to win the Women’s Ballon d’Or and gives our prediction on who will win the prize for 2025.

Women’s Ballon d’Or top 10 contenders

10. Barbra Banda (Orlando Pride and Zambia)

Zambian international Barbra Banda played a huge part in Orlando Pride winning the National Women’s Soccer League last season.

She netted four goals in the playoffs, including in the Championship Final against the Washington Spirit.

Banda also scored eight goals in 16 appearances this season, before an injury which ruled her out of the rest of the campaign.

Players from the NWSL often get overlooked when it comes to the Ballon d’Or award. Megan Rapinoe in 2019 is the only player from a club based in the United States to win the main prize.

Aug 9, 2025; Orlando, Florida, USA; Orlando Pride forward Barbra Banda (22) works up field in the first half against Racing Louisville FC at Inter&Co Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Russell Lansford-Imagn Images

9. Claudia Pina (Barcelona)

Barcelona attacker Claudia Pina was the top scorer in last season’s Champions League, although the Spanish club lost out to Arsenal in the final.

Pina netted 24 goals last season in total for Barcelona and eight for Spain, while also registering 11 assists.

That impressive goal contributions tally is likely to put her in the top ten to win the Women’s Ballon d’Or award.

8. Luzy Bronze (Chelsea)

Lucy Bronze is one of three England players in this list after helping the Lionesses defend their European Championship trophy at Euro 2025.

Her performances at the tournament are made to look even more impressive by the fact she played with a fractured leg.

Bronze was also influential for Chelsea as they completed a domestic treble last season.

Lucy Bronze lifts her second European Championship in 2025

7. Chloe Kelly (Arsenal)

Chloe Kelly had a year to remember after the negativity surrounding her future at the turn of the year.

She had fallen out of favour at Manchester City and was not expecting to make the England squad.

Kelly was loaned out to Arsenal and helped them win the Champions League before her permanent move to the Gunners this summer.

Her best performances came at Euro 2025, where she became a super-sub for Sarina Wiegman.

Kelly scored the winning goal in the semi-final against Italy and the winning penalty in the final, and is now a leading contender to win the BBC Sports Personality of the Year award.

6. Patricia Guijarro (Barcelona)

Patricia Guijarro had a stunning season for Barcelona and there were shouts for her being Player of the Tournament at Euro 2025, before Spain’s defeat to England.

As a defensive midfielder, it is harder for Guijarro to grab the headlines while playing around star-studded teammates for club and country.

However, her performances across the 2024-25 season make her a deserving contender in the Women’s Ballon d’Or award.

5. Marta (Orlando Pride)

Marta is in the top-five for our prediction on who will win the Women’s Ballon d’Or award at the age of 39.

She helped Orlando Pride win the NWSL, before playing a huge part in Brazil’s success at the Women’s Copa America.

Marta is an icon of the women’s game and a six-time winner of the FIFA World Player of the Year.

She should pick up plenty of votes for her performances over the last year, but is likely to fall short.

4. Aitana Bonmati (Barcelona)

Aitana Bonmati won’t complete a hat-trick of Ballon d’Or awards after winning the prize in 2024 and 2025.

She is undeniably one of the best players in the women’s game, though perhaps wasn’t quite as influential as she was in the past two years.

There were doubts over whether she would play at all during the Women’s Euros after she was hospitalised days before the tournament with meningitis.

She was perhaps Spain’s best performer during the knockout rounds of the tournament, but ultimately they fell short in the final with Bonmati failing to score during the penalty shootout.

3. Alessia Russo (Arsenal)

Arsenal striker Alessia Russo is undoubtedly a strong contender to win the Women’s Ballon d’Or award.

She was joint-top scorer in the Women’s Super League, and scored the vital equaliser for England in the Euro 2025 final.

It was a fantastic season for Russo, who also won the Women’s Champions League. However, there are strong arguments to be had that the two players ahead of her in our list had more influential seasons.

Alessia Russo won the Champions League with Arsenal at the end of last season

2. Alexia Putellas (Barcelona)

Alexia Putellas was the favourite to win the award over the first-half of 2025, but her case hasn’t been helped with Barcelona and Spain falling short in their respective finals.

She also disappeared into the background during the knockout phase of Euro 2025.

However, her numbers for the season are sensational with 27 goals and 21 assists, helping Barcelona win the Liga F, Copa de la Reina and Spanish Super Cup.

She was back at her best after some tough times with injury in the years since her 2021 and 2022 Women’s Ballon d’or awards. However, her performances in the Euro 2025 and Champions League finals mean she might just fall short.

Women’s Ballon d’Or prediction: Mariona Caldentey

Mariona Caldentey is our prediction to win the Women’s Ballon d’Or award for the first time.

Some might look at her missed penalty from the Euro 2025 final to say she doesn’t deserve the award. However, she scored a great in the final and was one of Spain’s best performers at the Euros.

Caldentey was also Arsenal’s best player last season, winning the Champions League and also the PFA Players’ Player of the Year award.

It has been an excellent year for Caldentey, which might just be completed with the Women’s Ballon d’Or award.

(Photo by Alex Pantling/Getty Images)

Who will win the other prizes at the Ballon d’Or awards?

There are other awards that will be handed out to players on Monday night at the Ballon d’Or awards.

The hardest award to predict is the Women’s Kopa Trophy for the best young player of the year.

Michelle Agyemang makes a strong case after her performances at Euro 2025. However, 17-year-old Paraguayan international Claudia Martinez is our pick after scoring six goals at the Women’s Copa America.

The Women’s Yashin Trophy will go to Hannah Hampton who won a domestic treble for Chelsea and was influential to England’s success at Euro 2025.

Barcelona, Chelsea and Arsenal are the strong contenders for Team of the Year. Barcelona and Chelsea might have won domestic trebles, but the Champions League plays a huge part in who wins these awards, which means Arsenal might just get the nod for this prize.

The same can be said for the Johan Cruyff award for coach of the year, which we predict will go to Renee Slegers.

Hannah Hampton lifts Euro 2025 trophy after crucial saves in penalty shootout against Spain

When is the 2025 Ballon d’Or ceremony?

The Ballon d’Or ceremony takes place on Monday, September 22nd, at the Theatre du Chatelet in Paris.

The ceremony will begin at 8pm BST and won’t be broadcast in the UK. However, it will be streamed on French outlet L’Equipe’s YouTube channel.