Ousmane Dembélé

Dembele scored PSG's equalizer as they beat Arsenal on penalties to retain the Champions League in Budapest, a result that made him eligible to chase a historic 'triple-double' — a second Champions League, a second World Cup and a second Ballon d'Or in the same year.

France topped their World Cup group and beat Sweden, Paraguay and Morocco through the knockout rounds before losing 2-0 to eventual champions Spain in the semifinal, then losing the third-place playoff to England 6-4 to finish fourth.

Dembele has evolved from a pure dribbling winger into a more complete forward — still capable of beating a defender one-on-one, but now a reliable creator and finisher who racked up 19 goals and 11 assists across the season for PSG.

For France, Didier Deschamps deploys him as a central or right-sided forward who combines directly with Kylian Mbappe, as seen when he teed up Mbappe's goal before scoring himself against Iraq.

Dembele won The Best FIFA Men's Player award for 2025 off the back of his PSG and France form, entering the World Cup as one of the tournament's most closely watched attackers.

France's run ended one win short of a final appearance, denying Dembele the chance to complete the historic double-double, but a fourth-place finish and a second Champions League still made for one of the standout seasons in the world game.