The sudden twist in the Ballon d’Or saga on the day of the award ceremony has split the world of football into two distinct groups of polarising ideas.
One set believes that Rodri was always the rightful winner of the Ballon d’Or given his accomplishments and consistency throughout the season. The population of this section in Madrid, unsurprisingly, is scarce.
The larger, and more profound of the two groups is the one believing that Vinicius Jr. was robbed of an accolade that was rightfully his and the race to which he led for months.
Needless to say, the surprising development has not gone down with the latter group with fans and players coming out in support of the player.
Public show of support
As revealed in a recent video published by El Chiringuito TV, fans of Vinicius and Real Madrid have gathered around the Theatre du Chatelet in massive numbers, cheering his name and condemning the sudden decision.
Chants of Vinicius are going strong outside the venue for the Ballon d’Or Gala in their attempt to make a point clear to France Football, the organisers and all the stakeholders involved.
It is not only fans of Vinicius who have come out in a show of support for the winger but also his teammates for club and country.
Tottenham Hotspur and Brazil striker Richarlison, in fact, has come out to verbally threaten authorities to ensure that the deserved player wins.
“If Vini doesn’t win, s**t is going to go down,” he said.
As it stands, Vinicius and the entire Real Madrid delegation are not travelling to Paris and will not be present for the event, a development that suggests that the Brazilian will indeed not win the award.
Sources close to the Ballon d’Or organisation, however, have come out to insist that Los Blancos’ decision is absurd and that even the winner is not aware of the result yet.
It remains to be seen who tops the list which is currently being unveiled. The tensions have never been higher.