Dembélé demands justice for Pacho ahead of 2026 Ballon d'Or nominees

Ousmane Dembélé still has the trophy fresh under his arm, but before the nominees for the 2026 Ballon d'Or are announced, he decided to use his platform to demand justice for a teammate. The PSG forward, winner of the award in its most recent edition, spoke with the newspaper L'Équipe and held nothing back: he wants Willian Pacho on the list.

There's history here. Last year, the Ecuadorian center back was left off the nominees despite many considering him among the best defenders on the planet. Pacho had just won the first Champions League by an Ecuadorian in the history of the Parisian club, and he went on to repeat the title the following season. That's exactly the precedent Dembélé doesn't want to see repeated.

Pacho! Let's not forget about him, I hope he's not forgotten this year, because he deserves it.Ousmane Dembélé

The Frenchman didn't stop there. Asked for a top 3, he answered without ranking them, like someone trying to avoid unnecessary controversy: Kvaratskhelia, Harry Kane (whom he praised for his outstanding season) and Kylian Mbappé rounded out his list.

More PSG names in the conversation

Dembélé went further and made clear that, in his view, the trophy could once again end up in the hands of a Parisian player. He mentioned Michael Olise, whom he called the best player in the Bundesliga this past season, and also added Lamine Yamal and Fabián Ruiz to that group of candidates who, in his opinion, deserve to be part of the conversation.

All of this comes out just before the official announcement. This Tuesday, France Football reveals the nominees for the award it has handed out since 1956, which in recent years has added parallel categories such as Club of the Year, Coach of the Year, Young Player of the Year, Goalkeeper of the Year, Striker of the Year and the Sócrates Award, the last of which recognizes humanitarian work within soccer.

For Pacho, having a teammate with Dembélé's stature speak up doesn't change anything on the field, but it does put his name back on the table before the final list comes out. Will it be enough this time to keep him off the sidelines? That will be known very soon.