One day after Vinícius Júnior won The Best FIFA Men's Player Award, the Brazilian took home the Golden Ball Award for his performance in the FIFA Intercontinental Cup final.
Real Madrid cruised to a comfortable 3–0 victory over C.F. Pachuca in the FIFA Intercontinental Cup final. Vinícius Júnior was everywhere on the pitch against the Liga MX side and finished the night with a goal and an assist, earning himself the Golden Ball and Player of the Tournament Awards.
The winger created Kylian Mbappé's winner with a brilliant step over that sent goalkeeper Carlos Moreno to ground, leaving a gaping goal for the Frenchman to bury the game's first goal. Vinícius Júnior then clinched Los Blancos' title from the spot in the 84th minute. The 24-year-old was the only forward to play 90 minutes as well.
Fellow Real Madrid teammate Fede Valverde took home the Silver Ball Award while C.F. Pachuca's Elías Montiel earned the Bronze Ball Award.
Despite missing time due to injury, Vinícius Júnior leads Real Madrid in scoring this season with 14 goals across all competitions. He continues to live up to the number seven on the back of his shirt.
Vinícius Júnior now has seven goals and seven assists in 12 finals for Real Madrid. The Brazilian etched his name in the history books back in June when he became the youngest player in history to score in two Champions League finals, breaking Lionel Messi's longstanding record.
He was voted as this year's The Best FIFA Men's Player by national team captains and coaches, fans and media representatives after failing to win the 2024 Ballon d'Or. Now, Vinícius Júnior has two more individual honors to add to his trophy cabinet back in Madrid.
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Amanda Langell is a Sports Illustrated Soccer freelance writer covering the European game and international competitions.
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