By Rex Mphisa/ Wires
Ouseman Dembélé who is of Mali origins, has become the sixth player of black origin to win the coveted Ballon d’Or.
Research shows that hi’s origins are from West Africa, specifically from Mali from where his father hailed while his mother is from either Mauritania and Senegal.
Dembele was born in Vernon, France, and raised there, but his parents are of African descent.
Despite being born and raised in France, his family ties are to West Africa.
Soccer history shows that there have been at least five players of Black descent to win the Ballon d’Or.
Eusébio (1965) was from Mozambique but was taken to Portugal where he was ranked to be a player equal to Edson Arantes do Nascimento aka,Pele, the Brazilian.
Dutchman Ruud Gullit (1987), who was the joint MC with Kate Scott at Monday night ceremony in France lifted it in 1987.
Gullit was a key part of the legendary Dutch trio at AC Milan with Marco van Basten and Frank Rijkaard in 1987, along with being a dominant presence in the Netherlands squad.
In 1987, he won the Ballon d’Or, with Van Basten and Rijkaard also appearing in the top three for the next two years.
In 1988, together with the reggae band Revelation Time, Gullit gained a No. 3 chart hit with the anti-apartheid song “South Africa” in the Dutch Top 40. Previously, he had a modest hit in 1984 with the song “Not the Dancing Kind
George Weah (1995), born October 1, 1966, Monrovia, Liberia is a politician and a former football (soccer) player who served as president of Liberia from 2018 to 2024.
Before entering politics, his impressive football career included being named African, European, and World Player of the Year in 1995—an unprecedented achievement.
Ronaldo Nazário (1997, 2002), has a history which has a large Afro-Brazilian population. While not exclusively of European descent, his racial identity is considered Black within Brazil and may have well be a child of African slaves. He is described as a ‘football phenomenon’
He has enjoyed great success, both with teams and individually, such as winning two Ballon d’Or awards (1997 and 2002).
Born to a humble family, he commenced playing football at Cruzeiro.
Such was his explosion as a footballer, that with only 17 years of age he was signed by PSV. and Ronaldinho (2005).
Ronaldinho, (2005): The Brazilian player with all Black features won the award in 2005. On Monday night he presented the award to Ouseman Dembélé.