The debate over individual awards never quiets. A frequent critique aimed at the Ballon d’Or is that it is determined by journalists rather than those inside the game, summed up by the sceptical refrain, “What do they know?”.

Voting based on the 2024–25 season is already under way and the initial list of 26 leading men’s and women’s players has been published. The longlist reflects last season’s major honours and high-profile performances, with the reigning European champions well represented among the nominees.

Paris Saint-Germain feature prominently. Seven members of Paris Saint-Germain’s starting XI for the men’s Champions League final received nomination, a showing that underlines the influence of that successful side on this stage. Arsenal Women also register strongly on the list, while England’s triumph at the summer’s European Championships has left a clear mark, giving the nominee pool a distinct Lionesses twang.

Those 26 names will not form the final teams. More votes will be compiled to produce two definitive XIs, one for men and one for women. Each final lineup will include a goalkeeper and at least three defenders, three midfielders and three forwards, ensuring balanced formations rather than arbitrary position counts.

The finished FIFPRO World XIs will be announced on Nov. 3, 2025. Until then the process will continue to attract scrutiny, both for who is included and for who decides. The shortlist offers a snapshot of the 2024–25 season’s standout performers, but the final selections will be decisive in shaping the year’s official best elevens.

Wayne Rooney suggests the stakes for Mikel Arteta are high as Arsenal sit top of the table after nine games. The club have opened a seven-point lead over Liverpool, with Manchester City six points behind. Bournemouth are four points adrift, while Tottenham Hotspur and Sunderland lie five points back.

That positional advantage has encouraged talk of a genuine title opportunity, even while questions remain about Arsenal’s ability to create open-play chances. Rooney, speaking on his podcast after Arsenal’s win over Crystal Palace, reflected on the squad’s readiness. “The squad is good enough now and I think they’ve had the experiences which have got them close, but I think they’re ready for it,” he said.

Rooney then outlined the consequence he believes would follow a failed title bid. “If they don’t win it now, you’d probably see a change of manager,” he predicted.

Arteta is contracted to the club until 2027 and there has been no suggestion internally that he intends to depart before then. He was heavily involved in the contract renewals for Gabriel and William Saliba, which extended both defenders through to the summer of 2030, an indication of long-term planning under his leadership.

Gary Neville voiced a similar conviction about Arsenal’s prospects. “This has got to be them, hasn’t it?” he asked on his podcast. Neville argued the club need not rewrite the record books to secure the title. “They’re not going to have to go and get 100 points, they’re not going to have to get even 90 or 95 points to win the league, mid-80s, high 80s will win them this title, and they can do that,” he said.

Neville added that Arsenal’s consistency and defensive organisation set them apart from rivals. He listed attacking and set-piece threats including “[Eberechi] Eze,” “[Noni] Madueke,” “[Gabriel] Martinelli,” “[Leandro] Trossard” and “[Declan] Rice” and praised the balance across the squad.

Pep Guardiola has also predicted that Arsenal and Liverpool, along with a third unnamed contender, would be difficult to catch this season. The debate now centres on whether Arsenal can sustain their start and convert it into a first league title in 21 years.

Mikel Arteta left Arsenal supporters with few concrete answers after victory over Crystal Palace as a quartet of players exited the match with fitness doubts. William Saliba did not return for the second half after feeling discomfort at the interval, while Declan Rice and Riccardo Calafiori were also forced off. Even substitute Gabriel Martinelli was affected by niggles.

“On Willy [Saliba], there are two things related to his substitution,” Arteta said, adding only that the centre back “had to be out after the first half.” Saliba had twisted his ankle at the end of August but missed only one match, the 3–0 win over Nottingham Forest, with Cristhian Mosquera filling his place. The 21-year-old summer recruit was described as assured against Palace and might have been called upon against Brighton & Hove Albion in the Carabao Cup on Wednesday even if Saliba had been available.

Rice limped off inside the final 10 minutes, a rare sight for a player who earned the nickname ‘The Horse’ for “my ability to go again, my sustainability and availability to the team,” by his own reasoning. Arteta said: “Declan was struggling with a knock that he took from the first half,” but did not give further detail on the nature or severity of the problem.

Calafiori left the pitch alongside Rice and was included in the generalised assessment. “Let’s see how they recover,” the manager said. When pressed for specifics, Arteta added: “No, because I don’t know. It’s not because I don’t want to tell you, I don’t really know.”

Arteta has previously been tactical about communicating injury information, once instructing injured players to stroll out of the team bus in their pregame kit to maintain the impression of availability. He also cast doubt over Gabriel’s involvement this weekend only to start the Brazilian and keep him on for the full 90 minutes.

Martinelli had replaced Bukayo Saka midway through the second half. Arteta explained Saka’s removal by revealing: “Bukayo’s been ill and hasn’t really trained. We didn’t know whether he was going to be fit, so he made a big effort to be available today.

“The doctor guided us to give us the best possible opportunity to be in the best condition. He managed to play a few minutes but the longer the game went on, he was getting too fatigued and risked injury. We didn’t want to take that risk.”