FILE PHOTO: Soccer Football - 2023 Ballon d'Or - Chatelet Theatre, Paris, France - October 30, 2023 General view of the Ballon d'Or REUTERS/Stephanie Lecocq/File Photo
MADRID (Reuters) - Real Madrid have cancelled their delegation's plans to attend the Ballon d'Or ceremony in Paris on Monday at the last minute as the club understand that their Brazil forward Vinicius Jr will not win the award, soccer sources told Reuters.
Bookmakers had 24-year-old Vinicius Jr, the Champions League player of the year, as the heavy odds-on favourite to claim his first Ballon d'Or, which is presented to the best player in the world, ahead of Manchester City's Spain midfielder Rodri, 28, and Real's England international Jude Bellingham.
