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Liverpool star breaks silence on why he skipped Ballon d’Or ceremony despite nomination
Liverpool star Alexis Mac Allister has revealed he didn’t attend the Ballon d’Or awards ceremony on Monday due to ‘personal reasons’. The Argentine was part of a five-strong Reds contingent included in the 30-man shortlist vying to win the esteemed individual award. Alisson and his wife, Natália Loewe, were part of the Liverpool contingent at the Ballon d’OrGetty But Mac Allister revealed before the ceremony that he wouldn’t be attendingGetty However, only Liverpool captain Virgil van Dijk and goalkeeper Alisson Becker ventured to Paris as Ousmane Dembele scooped the top prize. Mac Allister was part of the remaining three Anfield stars not present on the night, alongside Florian Wirtz and Mohamed Salah. The latter was most conspicuous by his absence, having been among the favourites for the Ballon d’Or, only to finish fourth ultimately. Mac Allister also opted to remain on Merseyside, instead, with the former Brighton man, since revealing why. Why did Mac Allister skip the Ballon d’Or? The 26-year-old posted a statement on Instagram in both Spanish and English to confirm his absence shortly before the ceremony. It read: “Won’t be able to attend @ballondorofficial ceremony today for personal reasons, all the best for everyone, enjoy!” Mac Allister and his partner, Ailen Cova, are soon expecting their first child together, having revealed the news in March. The pair have been together since 2022, after the £35million star won the World Cup in Qatar with Argentina. Cova shared a photo of her at Anfield holding her baby bump ahead of Liverpool’s dramatic 3-2 win over Atletico Madrid last week. Mac Allister didn’t attend the Ballon d’Or for personal reasonsInstagram View this post on Instagram A post shared by Ailén Cova (@ailencova) Liverpool at the Ballon d’Or Mac Allister finished 22nd in the 2025 list, having helped Liverpool win the Premier League title with a standout role in midfield. The midfielder scored seven goals and registered six assists in all competitions to finish ahead of Van Dijk (28) and Wirtz (29). It placed him second overall for Liverpool representatives, with Salah just missing out on the podium by placing fourth. The Egyptian similarly skipped the ceremony after ending up behind Paris Saint-Germain star Vitinha, Barcelona talisman Lamine Yamal and eventual winner Dembele. Salah is yet to address why he didn’t attend the Ballon d’Or, with Liverpool going on to praise their main man after the awards show. View Tweet: https://t.co/skmFTiH45K Ballon d’Or 2025 rankings in full: 30th: Michael Olise 29th: Florian Wirtz 28th: Virgil van Dijk 27th: Declan Rice 26th: Erling Haaland 25th: Denzel Dumfries 24th: Fabian Ruiz 23rd: Jude Bellingham 22nd: Alexis Mac Allister 21st: Serhou Guirassy 20th: Lautaro Martinez 19th: Joao Neves 18th: Scott McTominay 17th: Robert Lewandowski 16th: Vinicius Jr 15th: Viktor Gyokeres 14th: Desire Doue 13th: Harry Kane 12th: Khvicha Kvaratskhelia 11th: Pedri 10th: Nuno Mendes 9th: Gianluigi Donnarumma 8th: Cole Palmer 7th: Kylian Mbappe 6th: Achraf Hakimi 5th: Raphinha 4th: Mohamed Salah 3rd: Vitinha 2nd: Lamine Yamal 1st: Ousmane Dembele
Liverpool star Alexis Mac Allister has revealed he didn’t attend the Ballon d’Or awards ceremony on Monday due to ‘personal reasons’.
The Argentine was part of a five-strong Reds contingent included in the 30-man shortlist vying to win the esteemed individual award.
However, only Liverpool captain Virgil van Dijk and goalkeeper Alisson Becker ventured to Paris as Ousmane Dembele scooped the top prize.
Mac Allister was part of the remaining three Anfield stars not present on the night, alongside Florian Wirtz and Mohamed Salah.
The latter was most conspicuous by his absence, having been among the favourites for the Ballon d’Or, only to finish fourth ultimately.
Mac Allister also opted to remain on Merseyside, instead, with the former Brighton man, since revealing why.
Why did Mac Allister skip the Ballon d’Or?
The 26-year-old posted a statement on Instagram in both Spanish and English to confirm his absence shortly before the ceremony.
It read: “Won’t be able to attend @ballondorofficial ceremony today for personal reasons, all the best for everyone, enjoy!”
Mac Allister and his partner, Ailen Cova, are soon expecting their first child together, having revealed the news in March.
The pair have been together since 2022, after the £35million star won the World Cup in Qatar with Argentina.
Cova shared a photo of her at Anfield holding her baby bump ahead of Liverpool’s dramatic 3-2 win over Atletico Madrid last week.
Liverpool at the Ballon d’Or
Mac Allister finished 22nd in the 2025 list, having helped Liverpool win the Premier League title with a standout role in midfield.
The midfielder scored seven goals and registered six assists in all competitions to finish ahead of Van Dijk (28) and Wirtz (29).
It placed him second overall for Liverpool representatives, with Salah just missing out on the podium by placing fourth.
The Egyptian similarly skipped the ceremony after ending up behind Paris Saint-Germain star Vitinha, Barcelona talisman Lamine Yamal and eventual winner Dembele.
Salah is yet to address why he didn’t attend the Ballon d’Or, with Liverpool going on to praise their main man after the awards show.
Ballon d’Or 2025 rankings in full:
30th: Michael Olise
29th: Florian Wirtz
28th: Virgil van Dijk
27th: Declan Rice
26th: Erling Haaland
25th: Denzel Dumfries
24th: Fabian Ruiz
23rd: Jude Bellingham
22nd: Alexis Mac Allister
21st: Serhou Guirassy
20th: Lautaro Martinez
19th: Joao Neves
18th: Scott McTominay
17th: Robert Lewandowski
16th: Vinicius Jr
15th: Viktor Gyokeres
14th: Desire Doue
13th: Harry Kane
12th: Khvicha Kvaratskhelia
11th: Pedri
10th: Nuno Mendes
9th: Gianluigi Donnarumma
8th: Cole Palmer
7th: Kylian Mbappe
6th: Achraf Hakimi
5th: Raphinha
4th: Mohamed Salah
3rd: Vitinha
2nd: Lamine Yamal
1st: Ousmane Dembele
