Haaland skips Ballon d'Or for Swedish title clash

Manchester City striker Erling Haaland may be one of the best players in the world, but he won't be in the room when the Ballon d'Or is awarded in Paris on Monday, preferring instead a trip to Sweden where his friend Erik Botheim can win the league with Malmö.

The 24-year-old Ballon d'Or nominee was spotted in Malmö early on Monday evening ahead of their game against bitter rivals IFK Gothenburg, where a victory would give them their second straight Allsvenskan title and fourth in five years.

Haaland and Botheim became friends while playing for Norway's junior national team, and they also featured in a rap video together with Erik Sandberg that has been viewed more than 12 million times on YouTube.

Haaland scored 27 goals in 31 matches as City retained their Premier League title last season. At the 2023 Ballon d'Or ceremony he finished as runner-up to Argentina's Lionel Messi.

Botheim, also a striker, has been named in the starting line-up for Malmo on Monday, which kicks off at 1910 CET (1810 GMT), 50 minutes before the Ballon d'Or gala is set to get underway.

Haaland is not the only star avoiding Monday's festivities. Sources have told ESPN that Vinícius Júnior and his Real Madrid teammates will not attend the ceremony in the French capital, because they believe Manchester City midfielder Rodri will receive the award.

Vinícius, 24, was a leading contender to win the 2024 men's prize after leading Madrid to a La Liga and Champions League double last season.

One club source considers it "unfair" and "a disgrace" that Vinícius would not win the award. Not attending the ceremony is a form of protest in order to boycott what another club source considers "a historic robbery."

Information from ESPN's Gustavo Hofman and Rodrigo Faez contributed to this report