Verts: After Dembélé, another vote for the Ballon d'Or in favor of Maza!

Oct 31, 2026

Undoubtedly, Ibrahim Maza's odds for the Ballon d'Or are significant.

The young Algerian midfielder, aged 20, has been selected by the France Football committee among the ten candidates for the Kopa award for the best young player, and has received a highly notable vote.

He was already recognized at the ceremony in London by the previous Ballon d'Or winner of 2025, Ousmane Dembélé. Very friendly with him in front of the photocall, introducing him to his agent, he left a comment under a video of Maza on Instagram “Next Ballon d’Or inshallah.”

However, the PSG player did not choose the Algerian for the title of best young player, awarded by the vote of former winners of this prestigious individual award. Indeed, Dembélé opted for Yamal, Cubarsi, and his teammate Zaïre-Emery.

Other former Ballon d'Or winners also overlooked Ibrahim Maza, such as Karim Benzema who favored Ayoub Bouaddi, just like Luka Modric. It is worth noting that Zidane and Cristiano did not participate in the voting.

The only point Maza obtained to finish 9th out of 10 came from the eight-time Ballon d'Or Lionel Messi, who ranked him third, behind Lamine Yamal and Pau Cubarsí. He ranks behind Eli Junior Kroupi but ahead of Johan Manzambi.

It is worth mentioning that the Argentine legend got a glimpse of Algerian talent a few months ago during the 2026 World Cup!

DZfoot