{
  "id": 7738372,
  "title": "Not Yamal: La Liga chief backs Barcelona star to win Ballon d’Or – ‘He deserves it’",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/16/not-yamal-la-liga-chief-backs-barcelona-star-to-win-ballon-dor-he",
  "topic": "culture",
  "section": "Culture",
  "published": "2026-09-16T08:00:00.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Yahoo Sports",
    "slug": "yahoo-sports",
    "url": "https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/not-yamal-la-liga-chief-080000837.html"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "As the Ballon d’Or race intensifies, La Liga chief Javier Tebas has thrown his support behind Barcelona’s Rodri for the prestigious award. Tebas believes that Rodri has earned another Ballon d’Or, citing his outstanding performance in the 2026 FIFA World Cup. The La Liga chief acknowledged that Rodri’s leadership, poise and presence in midfield played a crucial role in Spain’s historic World Cup victory in 2010.\n\nHowever, Rodri may face a challenge in his quest for a second Ballon d’Or this year. His injury-plagued campaign last season, during which he appeared in only 21 league games, may be seen as a negative aspect of his candidacy. Despite his stellar World Cup performance, Rodri’s only tangible accolade is the World Cup trophy, which might not be enough to sway the judges in his favor against fellow contenders Lionel Messi and Kylian Mbappe, who both won the La Liga and World Cup titles.\n\nWhile Barcelona is unreservedly backing Yamal as their candidate for the Ballon d’Or, Rodri remains unfazed by the club’s public support. The midfield maestro is content with the fact that his peers recognize his exceptional World Cup performance and is happy to have the club’s backing.",
  "summary": "The Ballon d’Or debate is heating up as we move closer to the ceremony date, with at least four different players in contention to win the coveted trophy.Lamine Yamal has been pegged as the favourit...",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 2,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "Yahoo Sports",
        "title": "Lamine Yamal chasing another Barcelona record after matching Messi feat",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/16/lamine-yamal-chasing-another-barcelona-record-after-matching-messi",
        "published": "2026-09-16T06:25:00.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}