While football fans are waiting to find out the name of the new winner of the “Golden Ball“, curious stories continue to emerge around the most prestigious individual award.
The former editor-in-chief of France Football Pascal Ferret revealed that he was the subject of an attempted bribe by a football agent in the past. The impresario offered him money to help his client win the prestigious award.
Ferret did not reveal the name of the football player or the year in which the incident occurred. He headed France Football for 30 years, and the magazine is traditionally associated with the organization of the “Ballon d'Or“.
“Yes, it's true. An impresario asked to meet me. Apparently his player was among the nominees. After explaining to me at length why his client deserved the award, he asked me if I could “sell his candidacy to the jury“, Ferre said, quoted by Goal.
The journalist added that he had to get up from the table for a few minutes to make a phone call. When he returned, the agent had already left the establishment, but an envelope was left on the table.
“I took it and left it at the reception. "I don't know what was inside," the former editor-in-chief revealed.
According to preliminary research, the main favorites for the “Golden Ball“ are Harry Kane, Lamine Yamal and Kylian Mbappe.
Fere also talked about some of the most memorable moments from the years in which he personally informed the winners of their success. Among them are the reactions of Luka Modric in 2018 and Karim Benzema in 2022.
The conversation with Modric turned out to be particularly emotional. “I told him he had won. Suddenly there was silence on the other end of the phone. "Then he started crying and told me he couldn't believe it," Ferre recalls.
Benzema's reaction was much calmer. At first, Ferre was even surprised by the lack of emotion.
Later, the Frenchman explained the reason - he was getting a massage during the conversation and his teammates were around him. He wanted to celebrate the news loudly, but he had to keep the information a secret.