Mbappé Dismisses Dembele Rift Ahead of Ballon d’Or Showdown
Kylian Mbappé is walking into Ballon d’Or week with a smile, not a feud.
The Real Madrid star has moved quickly to dismiss talk of a rift with former Paris Saint-Germain teammate Ousmane Dembele, insisting there is “no tension” between the two as they prepare to go head-to-head for football’s biggest individual prize in London on October 26.
The noise started when Mbappé openly compared their career paths, a contrast some read as a dig at Dembele. The narrative spread fast. Mbappé stamped on it just as quickly.
Speaking to L’Equipe, he was unequivocal. “I’ve already spoken to him about it, and there’s no tension,” he said. “He’s a friend. I don’t think there’s really any problem regarding that. I’m very relaxed about it.”
From World Cup allies to Ballon d’Or rivals
Both men were central to France’s run to the World Cup semi-finals, driving Les Bleus with their pace and flair. They remain close off the pitch, but the dynamic has shifted: now they stand as direct competitors for the Ballon d’Or, alongside Barcelona prodigy Lamine Yamal and Bayern Munich striker Harry Kane.
Asked about the idea of Dembele winning the award before him – something almost unthinkable ten years ago – Mbappé leaned into the story of two very different climbs to the top.
“He has always been seen as a talented player. I, on the other hand, have always been seen as the chosen one,” he explained.
The line cut through. Mbappé wasn’t backing away from it either. He pointed out that he hit the elite level as a teenager, while Dembele’s rise has been slower, disrupted by repeated injury setbacks before his resurgence in Paris.
“I was at the top right away, from a very young age. He had a different journey, with injuries, but he has caught up really well,” Mbappé said.
Some saw those words as a slight. Mbappé sees them as a simple description of two careers that started in the same generation but moved at different speeds.
“I was the top scorer in all the biggest competitions”
On the pitch, Mbappé knows exactly what he is putting in front of the Ballon d’Or voters: numbers. Relentless, unforgiving numbers.
Speaking to RFI, he laid out his case without hesitation. “I had a great year on an individual level, I know that’s the most important criterion for the Ballon d’Or, I was the top scorer in all the biggest competitions,” he said.
He is not hiding how much this one matters. “I think it could be a good year for me, I felt it deep down!” he admitted, before acknowledging the unpredictability of this edition. “A Ballon d’Or has never been this wide open? That’s what they’re saying, yeah, I don’t know the entire history of the Ballon d’Or. It’s pleasant to see, to take part in it, and I think it entertains people! I’d be disappointed of course if I don’t win it!”
The race feels different this time. No Lionel Messi, no Cristiano Ronaldo as automatic reference points. Instead, a cluster of stars, Mbappé and Dembele among them, trying to seize a new era.
Zidane steps in as Mbappé’s next great influence
All of this plays out as the two French forwards reunite under a new national-team boss with a mythical status of his own.
Zinedine Zidane has officially replaced Didier Deschamps as France head coach after the World Cup, bringing one of Mbappé’s earliest football memories full circle.
Mbappé recalled a formative moment with Zidane in an interview with AS, one that now feels almost scripted. “He was the first person who picked me up to take me to Real Madrid, to the training complex. I was 13 or 14, so it was a long time ago. Now he’s my national team coach. It’s like a film, but it’s amazing. It’s real,” he said.
From being driven to Madrid as a teenager by Zidane to chasing the Ballon d’Or as France’s leading man under him, Mbappé now stands at the intersection of legacy and expectation.
Dembele is no longer just the gifted winger trying to stay fit. He is a direct rival for the game’s most coveted individual trophy.
There is no tension, Mbappé insists. Only competition. And in London on October 26, that will be decided in gold.
