Photo: Real Madrid stars’ names removed from seats at Ballon d’Or ceremony

A photo stemming from tonight’s Ballon d’Or venue has gone viral across social media.

This comes after the seats reserved for Real Madrid pair Vinícius Jr. and Jude Bellingham were left empty.

The subject of the Ballon d’Or has of course dominated the headlines in Spain’s capital across the day to date.

This comes after word was forthcoming that Vinícius Jr. – the long-time frontrunner to clinch the ‘Golden Ball’ – had been snubbed.

The understanding is that the prize is instead set to go the way of Manchester City midfielder Rodri, with Vinícius set to come in 2nd place.

In response to the news, the powers that be at the Santiago Bernabéu made the call to boycott the ceremony, set to take place at the Théâtre du Châtelet in Paris.

And, as alluded to above, this stance has since given rise to a viral photo across social media.

After chairs were set up alongside one another featuring the names of Real Madrid pair Vinícius and Jude Bellingham, these labels were removed, leaving a pair of empty seats alongside that of Ballon d’Or-in-waiting Rodri.

Conor Laird – GSFN