The finalists for The Best FIFA Football Awards 2025 have been made public, with nominations of the best male and female players and teams in the period from August 11, 2024, to August 2, 2025. These awards are the highest of recognition for the world’s game and the judges seem to have been mostly influenced by the stellar shows put up at the UEFA Champions League, domestic leagues, Women’s Euro 2025, and the first-ever Men’s Club World Cup.
The men’s player to be considered for the best award is dashing one of the Paris Saint-Germain kits with Dembélé, Hakimi and Vitinha all making the list, but Kylian Mbappé of Real Madrid, Harry Kane of Bayern Munich and Mohamed Salah of Liverpool are also among the shortlisted players. The list of nominees also includes a prominent youth figure, Lamine Yamal, alongside a similarly youthful Chelsea playmaker Cole Palmer, as being the future of the game.
The Best Women’s Player nominees encompass a broad range of Barcelona players with current Ballon d’Or holder Aitana Bonmatí being joined by Patri Guijarro, Claudia Pina and Alexia Putellas. Additionally, both Chelsea and Arsenal have their representatives in Lauren James and Alessia Russo respectively and on the other hand, Malawi’s Temwa Chawinga is there to ignite the flame of the underdog story after a very successful season in the NWSL.
In the coaching categories, the Best Men’s Coach nominees include Mikel Arteta of Arsenal, Luis Enrique of PSG, and Hansi Flick of Barcelona, while for Best Women’s Coach, Sarina Wiegman, Renée Slegers, and Sonia Bompastor are the front-runners.
The goalkeepers’ awards see the likes of Thibaut Courtois, Emiliano Martínez, and Manuel Neuer being nominated for the men’s category, and in contrast, Nigeria’s Chiamaka Nnadozie is the one who gets to be among the Best Women’s Goalkeeper Challengers following her extraordinary club performances.
Fans are not left out of the picture and they can have a say in the decision-making by voting for their favorites in all categories on FIFA’s official website, and the winners will be announced at the awards ceremony towards the end of this year or in early next year.
