The 70th Ballon d’Or award ceremony, set to crown global soccer’s top player, is officially happening on Monday, September 22. But get this: the whole event in London has already hit multiple snags, pushing back the start time, and it’s making history by being held outside France for the first time ever! The biggest individual honor in soccer is certainly starting with a bang, or maybe, a slight delay.
The Big Stage Moves, The Clock Keeps Ticking (Slowly)
This year’s gala is a landmark event. It’s normally held at the Theatre du Chatlet in Paris, but for its 70th anniversary, the ceremony is taking place at the London Palladium Theatre. Why the switch? It’s a shout-out to the award’s first-ever winner, English star Sir Stanley Matthews. That’s a pretty cool way to honor history, right? Except, history has already decided to test everyone’s patience.
The original plan was for the ceremony to kick off at 8:00 p.m. GMT. But, moments before the scheduled start, a 30-minute delay was announced, with absolutely no reason given. Talk about a cliffhanger! Then, DAZN, who’s live streaming the whole thing, dropped another bomb: a *further* 15-minute delay, this time blaming the capital’s infamous traffic. So, if you’re tuning in from London, expect the gala to start at 8:45 p.m. GMT. For those of us across the pond in North America, keeping in mind Europe observed Daylight Saving Time a week earlier, that 8:45 p.m. GMT start translates to Monday, October 26, at 4:45 p.m. Eastern Time, 3:45 p.m. Central Time, 2:45 p.m. Mountain Time, and 1:45 p.m. Pacific Time.
Who’s Taking Home the Gold? And How to Watch
So, who’s got the best shot at being named the greatest player from the last year? The whispers around the soccer world are loud. Harry Kane, Lamine Yamal, and Kylian Mbappe are considered the most likely winners on the men’s side, and honestly, each one has a compelling story. The full list of nominees, which was announced back on September 8 for both men’s and women’s awards, features a ton of incredible talent. Some of the names in the running for the men’s Ballon d’Or include Jude Bellingham from Real Madrid, Barcelona’s Pau Cubarsi, Chelsea/Real Madrid’s Marc Cucurella, Ousmane Dembele of Paris Saint-Germain, Bayern Munich’s Luis Diaz, Bruno Fernandes from Manchester United, Arsenal’s Gabriel, Erling Haaland representing Manchester City, Achraf Hakimi of Paris Saint-Germain, and Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, also from Paris Saint.
If you’re in the U.S. or Canada, you won’t find this epic event on live TV. But don’t sweat it, because you can catch all the action live on DAZN or on L’Equipe’s YouTube channel.
The stakes are sky-high, as always, when the best in global soccer gather to celebrate individual brilliance. Even with the unexpected delays, the anticipation is electric. Who will join the pantheon of legends? We’re all glued to our screens, ready to find out. Just, you know, a little later than planned!
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by The Sporting News.
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