Astonishing tantrum sees Real Madrid boycott Ballon d'Or ceremony after learning Vinicius Junior was not being named best player (even though they WERE named best club!)

The prestigious Ballon d'Or ceremony in Paris was mired in controversy last night after a boycott by Real Madrid and Spanish journalists when striker Vinícius Júnior was denied the title.

Empty chairs could be seen in the auditorium at the Théâtre du Châtelet after the decision to award football's most cherished individual prize to Manchester City midfielder Rodri instead leaked out ahead of time.

Even though Real Madrid won the title of best men's club, no one turned up to collect the award, such was the anger from their sulking camp.

Seats which had been reserved for Ballon d'Or finalists Vinícius Júnior and his teammate Jude Bellingham and others were hastily reallocated and the nameplates removed.

Brazilian forward Vinícius Júnior, 24, known as 'Vini' defiantly posted on X: 'I'll do it 10x if I have to. They're not ready.'

Though he didn't turn up to collect his Coach of the Year award, Real Madrid manager Carlo Ancelotti pointedly mentioned Vinícius Júnior in his 'acceptance post' on social media, saying: 'I want to thank my family, my president, my club, my players and above all Vini and [defender Dani] Carvajal.'

Real Madrid claimed in a statement that the decision to overlook Vinicius Jnr showed that the organisers and UEFA 'don't respect them'.

The Spanish giants were hoping that one of their leading lights was going to win the prestigious award, but news was leaked claiming that he had been beaten to the Golden Ball by Rodri, another favourite.

So 'Los Blancos' boycotted the ceremony with no one connected with the club attending. Vinicius was one of six Real nominees in the 30-player shortlist for the award following the club's success in La Liga and the Champions League.

Carvajal, Bellingham, Fede Valverde, Kylian Mbappe and Antonio Rudiger were all up for the Ballon but none flew to France - nor manager Ancelotti or president Florentino Perez as they sulked over the result.

The club told AFP: 'If the award criteria doesn't give it to Vinicius as the winner, then those same criteria should point to Carvajal as the winner. As this was not the case, it is clear that Ballon d'Or-UEFA does not respect Real Madrid. And Real Madrid does not go where it is not respected.'

Rodri's success is largely down to his playing a leading role in Spain's Euro 2024 triumph. The City star, 28, who added another Premier League title, was voted the tournament's best player, but Carvajal was also part of the Spanish side.

Real insisted that Carvajal – who also won the Champions League - should rank ahead of Rodri if international success was the main criterion.

Vinicius was unable to add the Copa America to his European club success in the summer as Brazil were knocked out by Uruguay in the quarter-finals.

The Ballon d'Or is voted for by a panel of journalists representing the top 100 nations in the FIFA rankings. Real have the joint most wins of any club in the accolade's history - winning in on 12 occasions along with Spanish rivals Barcelona.

Karim Benzema was Real's last winner, claiming the award in 2022. Since 2000, they have also seen Luka Modric, Cristiano Ronaldo, Fabio Cannavaro and Ronaldo claim the Golden Ball.

Rodri meanwhile is set to become the first Premier League winner since Ronaldo won the award in 2008. He is also poised to become the first Spanish winner in more than 60 years with this national boss, Luis de la Fuente, naming him as the man most deserving.

Because of last night's Real boycott, Kylian Mbappe also missed the chance to pick up the Gerd Muller Trophy he won jointly with England captain Harry Kane, of Bayern Munich.

The result sparked angry reactions from 'Vini's' supporters.

The Confederation of Brazilian Football posted: '@Vini, your roots are golden. We will always be together. An entire nation is proud of you.'

Vini's Brazilian team-mate and Spurs forward Richarlison posted a live video with his head in his hand when the result was announced after saying earlier: 'If Vini doesn't win, SH*T IS GONNA GO DOWN.'

Then he told his 22m Instagram followers: 'All of us who live football await individual awards with great anticipation each season. Today, all Brazilians who love football woke up expecting to see another player from our country winning an award for the best in the world after so long.

'Unfortunately, due to criteria that no one can understand, the award did not come.'

More diplomatically, he added: 'And don't get me wrong, Rodri is a great player, who deserves to be among the best. But Vini not winning this Ballon d'Or was embarrassing, and the only thing that lost today was football.

'I remember Vini saying that his dream was to see the whole of Brazil rooting for him. And that day was today! You're giant and the best in the world, kid! And no trophy will change that. Keep moving forward and never shut up! We're together!'