Ballon d’Or 2024: Organisers Confirm Date for Vinicius Junior vs Jude Bellingham Battle

• The much-anticipated 2024 Ballon d'Or awards ceremony will take place at the Théâtre du Châtelet in Paris, France, on October 2024
• Jude Bellingham and Vinicius Junior are the perceived frontrunners for the award after winning the Champions League final
• The organisers have also introduced two new awards for managers that will be feted alongside the main categories at the awards

Plans have begun in earnest to fete the next winner of the Ballon d'Or award later this year.

France Football, which organises the ceremony, has confirmed the 2024 edition, which will be the 68th time the award is given out, will be held on October 28.

The gala will take place at the iconic Théâtre du Châtelet in Paris and this year's award will be special as the publication will join forces with the European football governing body, UEFA, in the whole process.

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The process will begin on September 4, when a list of nominees will be unveiled. Last year, the main categories had 30 names each, which were settled on by the editorial team at France Football.

Ballon d'Or introduces two new awards

The 2024 award will see a total of 10 awards dished out, up from the eight of last year. The Men's Coach of the Year and Women's Coach of the Year are two new introductions.

Xabi Alonso, Pep Guardiola, and Carlo Ancelotti are the early frontrunners for the award. In his first full season as manager, Alonso led Bayer Leverkusen to an unbeaten season in the Bundesliga and also won the DFB-Pokal.

Guardiola became the first manager to win four successive top-flight titles in England, while Ancelotti pulled clear as the manager with the most Champions League titles.

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Outgoing Barcelona Femeni's head coach, Jonatan Giráldez, is the favourite in the women's category after guiding the Catalans to a first-ever quadruple.

2024 Ballon d'Or rankings

Sports Brief also previously reported on the updated Ballon d'Or 2024 rankings after the Champions League final was completed.

Vinicius Junior took another significant step after scoring the second goal in Real Madrid's 2-0 win over Borussia Dortmund.

The Brazilian is now the leading favourite alongside his Los Blancos teammate, Jude Bellingham, ahead of the awards ceremony.