As 2025 draws to a close, world football looks back on a year filled with shock champions, historic breakthroughs, and unforgettable individual brilliance. From PSG’s fairytale triumph in Europe to Tottenham ending a long trophy drought, and from small nations rewriting World Cup history to Ousmane Dembélé owning the global stage, the year truly belonged to football’s drama and evolution.
PSG and Tottenham Rewrite European History
Paris Saint-Germain stunned Europe by lifting their first-ever UEFA Champions League title without global superstars like Lionel Messi, Neymar, or Kylian Mbappé. Under Luis Enrique, a youthful PSG side demolished Inter Milan 5–0 in the final, the biggest margin in Champions League final history. PSG became only the second French club after Marseille to conquer Europe, while Enrique secured a historic treble, making him just the second coach to achieve that feat with two different clubs.
Meanwhile, Tottenham Hotspur finally ended 17 years of pain by winning the Europa League. A narrow 1–0 victory over Manchester United in San Sebastian delivered Spurs their first trophy since 2008 and their first European title since 1984. Ironically, the triumph was followed by the dismissal of coach Ange Postecoglou just days later.
“𝑾𝒊𝒏𝒏𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒄𝒉𝒂𝒏𝒈𝒆𝒔 𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒓𝒚𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒈, 𝒃𝒖𝒕 𝒇𝒐𝒐𝒕𝒃𝒂𝒍𝒍 𝒎𝒐𝒗𝒆𝒔 𝒇𝒂𝒔𝒕,” 𝒐𝒏𝒆 𝑺𝒑𝒖𝒓𝒔 𝒐𝒇𝒇𝒊𝒄𝒊𝒂𝒍 𝒓𝒆𝒇𝒍𝒆𝒄𝒕𝒆𝒅 𝒂𝒇𝒕𝒆𝒓 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒆𝒎𝒐𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏𝒂𝒍 𝒇𝒊𝒏𝒂𝒍.
International Football Shocks and World Cup Drama
Portugal enjoyed a golden year, winning the UEFA Nations League, youth European titles, and their first-ever World Cup crown at any level with the U-17 triumph. Cristiano Ronaldo lifted silverware once more, though he also received the first red card of his international career, a moment that stunned fans worldwide in Football.
Italy, meanwhile, faced familiar heartbreak. The four-time world champions slipped into another WFootball orld Cup playoff, risking a third consecutive absence after losing crucial qualifiers to Norway.
That same Norway celebrated a historic return to the World Cup after 28 years, powered by Erling Haaland. The striker smashed records with 16 goals in qualifiers, matching Robert Lewandowski’s long-standing benchmark.
Smaller nations also stole headlines. Curaçao, Cape Verde, and Haiti all secured historic World Cup qualifications, with Curaçao becoming the smallest nation ever to reach the finals.
“𝑻𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒑𝒓𝒐𝒗𝒆𝒔 𝒇𝒐𝒐𝒕𝒃𝒂𝒍𝒍 𝒅𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒎𝒔 𝒃𝒆𝒍𝒐𝒏𝒈 𝒕𝒐 𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒓𝒚𝒐𝒏𝒆, 𝒏𝒐𝒕 𝒋𝒖𝒔𝒕 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒈𝒊𝒂𝒏𝒕𝒔,” 𝒔𝒂𝒊𝒅 𝒂 𝑪𝒖𝒓𝒂ç𝒂𝒐 𝒇𝒆𝒅𝒆𝒓𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏 𝒐𝒇𝒇𝒊𝒄𝒊𝒂𝒍.
Chelsea, Messi, and Mbappé Shine Globally
Chelsea capped off a remarkable year by conquering the expanded FIFA Club World Cup, crushing PSG 3–0 in the final. The Blues also lifted the UEFA Conference League, confirming their global resurgence.
Lionel Messi ended the year on a high in the United States, finally winning the MLS Cup with Inter Miami. The Argentine icon claimed his 47th career trophy, along with MLS MVP and Golden Boot honors, silencing doubts about his American chapter.
Kylian Mbappé, now thriving at Real Madrid, matched and then surpassed his idol Cristiano Ronaldo’s record for goals in a calendar year with Los Blancos, underlining his dominance in Spain.
The Year Belonged to Ousmane Dembélé
Above all, 2025 was Ousmane Dembélé’s year. The PSG winger delivered breathtaking consistency, scoring 35 goals in 53 matches and driving his club to multiple finals. His performances earned him both the Ballon d’Or and FIFA Best Player of the Year, edging out Kylian Mbappé and Lamine Yamal.
Once overshadowed by Messi and Ronaldo, Dembélé now stands firmly at the summit of world football.
“𝑻𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒔𝒆𝒂𝒔𝒐𝒏 𝒄𝒉𝒂𝒏𝒈𝒆𝒅 𝒎𝒚 𝒍𝒊𝒇𝒆. 𝑰 𝒘𝒐𝒓𝒌𝒆𝒅, 𝑰 𝒘𝒂𝒊𝒕𝒆𝒅, 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒏𝒐𝒘 𝑰’𝒎 𝒉𝒆𝒓𝒆,” 𝑫𝒆𝒎𝒃é𝒍é 𝒔𝒂𝒊𝒅 𝒂𝒇𝒕𝒆𝒓 𝒓𝒆𝒄𝒆𝒊𝒗𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑩𝒂𝒍𝒍𝒐𝒏 𝒅’𝑶𝒓.
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