Ousmane Dembele's comeback fairytale and remembering Diogo Jota: The key moments that defined football in 2025

As 2025 draws to a come together, with the men’s FIFA domain transfuse only when vi months away and a calendar year of football behind us, there is definitely a feel of a year that held its breath in anticipation of what comes next. Nevertheless, this does not mean this was a year in which nothing happened – in fact, it felt like one in which all the pieces quietly floated into place, which might come to define football worldwide in the coming years.

Controversy, triumph, heartbreak, tragedy – all of it was present in 2025, and all of it will play a role in 2026 and beyond. Here are a look at some of the key moments that will never be forgotten even as the calendar turns over.

Tottenham Hotspur winning a first trophy in 17 years, Paris Saint-Germain winning the UEFA Champions League to finally deliver for their Qatari ownership, Newcastle United ending a 70-year drought, Harry Kane winning his first professional team trophy – all impressive, historic feats, but those that pale in comparison to Crystal Palace winning their first major trophy in the club’s 119-year existence.

As much as the trophy itself, the route for an ever-improving Palace team is what made headlines – hometown hero Eberechi Eze volleying home early on, and a dogged effort making sure they held on against the dominant Manchester City. In a year full of teams ending their droughts, Palace winning the oldest football cup competition is certainly something to celebrate.

After lifting the Premier League in manager Arne Slot’s first season in charge, it was strength to strength for Liverpool. Major signings were brought in – big money on Milos Kerkez, Jeremie Frimpong, and Hugo Ekitike, before splashing 100 million pounds and add-ons for German star Florian Wirtz. It only got more expensive from there, as the champions shattered the record fee for a transfer in English football by paying Newcastle 125 million for disgruntled star striker Alexander Isak.

However, all that upheaval turned out to do more harm than good, as Liverpool suffered from a bad start to the season and suddenly saw Slot’s job on the line. To make matters worse, a very public falling-out with talisman Mohamed Salah seemed to leave them in deep trouble. They have some momentum with a winning streak to close out the year, but a big story in north-west England.

A year before the FIFA World Cup invites 48 teams to North America, the USA also debuted the new and expanded format for the Club World Cup, which seeks to add more top-quality teams and globalise high-quality football. In the much-criticised tournament this summer, it was Enzo Maresca’s Chelsea who showed a glimpse of the quality they possess, as they worked through a fairly favourable draw before managing to upset European champions PSG with a 3-0 thrashing in the finals. In the first showing of the new CWC format, complaints regarding player welfare remained – but there was plenty to like as players from South American clubs in particular got a platform and subsequent big-money moves.

A couple of years ago, Ousmane Dembele was a written-off failed wonderkid at Barcelona, never quite living up to his potential and always far too injury-prone to meet the heights that had once been expected of him. In that sense, his transfer to Paris was fairly under the radar, but one which changed the trajectory for a team that had otherwise made a move to prioritise local youth.

Now the leader of this young, hungry group, Dembele rose several levels – and for all intents and purposes looked like the best player in the world, creating and scoring at will, hammering home goal contributions throughout the Champions League as PSG won the Champions League. For his work and his incredible quality through the year, Dembele was awarded the Ballon d’Or – an incredible story to cap off the renaissance of an incredible player, and one of the most heartwarming comeback stories of the recent past.

Unfortunately and tragically, 2025 had the shadow of grief hanging over it. In the summer break, a tragic car accident claimed the lives of Portugal and Liverpool forward Diogo Jota and his brother Andre Silve in northern Spain. It was a sudden and heartbreaking moment for a player who was well-liked amongst teammates, rivals, and the football world at large. Tributes have poured in in the months that followed – players remaking his famous video-game celebration, reminiscing about his goals, and remembering all that he stood for – a cause to stand as one.

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