The glittering lights of Dubai provided the backdrop for the latest edition of the Globe Soccer Awards, an event established in 2010 to recognize global excellence across the beautiful game. While the ceremony honors myriad achievements, the evening`s narrative centered firmly on the conclusive validation of a career transformation: Ousmane Dembele, the once-maligned prodigy, was crowned the world’s Best Male Player, completing an unprecedented clean sweep of major individual honors for the calendar year 2025.
The Final Stamp of Approval: Dembele`s Legendary Campaign
For years, the story of Ousmane Dembele was one of immense, yet frustratingly intermittent, potential. Critics pointed to inconsistency, technical fragility, and a lengthy list of injuries that seemed perpetually to sabotage his progress. However, the 2024/2025 season acted as the definitive counter-argument to every past skepticism.
At 28, the PSG star achieved peak performance, registering an exceptional 35 goals across all competitions. Crucially, his contributions were not merely statistical; they were foundational to team success. Dembele played the instrumental role in leading Paris Saint-Germain to their inaugural UEFA Champions League title. The continental final itself served as a testament to PSG`s dominance and Dembele`s efficacy, concluding in a historic 5-0 trouncing of Inter Milan—a result few had anticipated in a clash of such magnitude.
The Globe Soccer Award confirms what the Ballon d’Or and FIFA Best Men’s Player titles had already established: Dembele was the undisputed statistical and instrumental force of the year. This final recognition, celebrated in the UAE, signifies the ultimate realization of the talent scouts always knew resided within the French international.
PSG`s Total Victory and the Best Coach
The evening in Dubai was less a competition among clubs and more a victory lap for Parisian football. PSG’s organizational excellence was heavily rewarded, underlining the success of their strategic restructuring following their European triumph.
The club itself was named Best Male Club. Furthermore, the systematic effectiveness implemented by Coach Luis Enrique was recognized with the Best Coach accolade. The awards spread across the team’s structure: Vitinha was honored as Best Midfielder, while Desire Doue was celebrated as Emerging Player. Demonstrating the importance of front-office vision, Luis Campos (Best Sporting Director) and Nasser Al-Khelaifi (Best Sports President) also collected silverware. When excellence is this comprehensive, the resulting accolades are more than deserved—they are inevitable.
Lamine Yamal: The Heir Apparent and Maradona`s Legacy
While Dembele stood atop the pyramid, the event strongly highlighted the continuing ascent of the next generation. Barcelona`s Lamine Yamal, just 18 years old, confirmed his status as an unprecedented talent, collecting two significant honors on the night.
Yamal, who was the Ballon d’Or runner-up, was recognized as the Best Forward. More significantly, he was presented with the Diego Armando Maradona Award. This award, reserved for the player demonstrating the greatest skill and talent on the ball, is perhaps the ultimate compliment to a player`s inherent genius. Yamal`s nomination for the overall Best Male Player alongside established titans like Kylian Mbappe and Dembele, despite his age, confirms that his prodigious skill is already considered among the world`s elite.
The Ironic Intermission: A Pause on Perfection
The world`s best footballer is currently, and rather ironically, operating on reduced minutes. While the Globe Soccer Award validates the spectacular past, Dembele`s current 2025/2026 season has been highly disjointed. Recurring muscular issues—specifically hamstring and calf injuries—have limited the French international to just six starts in all competitions.
This physical setback highlights the severe challenge posed by fixture congestion, a phenomenon likely exacerbated by PSG’s extended commitments, including their participation in the Club World Cup over the summer. Coach Luis Enrique has understandably managed Dembele’s minutes with extreme caution, prioritizing his rehabilitation.
The immediate objective is clear: to restore Dembele to full match sharpness in time for the critical spring run-in. As PSG seeks to defend their Champions League crown and reclaim the top spot in Ligue 1 from Lens, the availability of the recognized world`s best player will be the decisive factor. For now, the most decorated player of 2025 must wait patiently, grounded by the very physical demands that he had mastered so spectacularly just months before.
