Source:REUTERS/Thaier Al-Sudani
[Saba Sports News] In the recently concluded 2025 South American Footballer of the Year voting, Giorgian de Arrascaeta, who plays for Brazilian club Flamengo, was successfully elected. Arrascaeta’s selection is truly well-deserved. In 2025, he led Flamengo to win six championships, including the Brasileirão and the Copa Libertadores, achieving a grand slam in club competitions. Personally, he made 69 appearances throughout the year, contributing 28 goals and 19 assists, making him the club’s all-time best foreign scorer. He also set a record for 58 wins by a non-goalkeeper player in the Copa Libertadores and helped the Uruguay national team qualify for the 2026 World Cup.
This honor marks the first time in 10 years that a Uruguayan player has received this award, highlighting the resurgence of competitiveness in Uruguayan football. I believe that Arrascaeta’s overwhelming victory reflects South American football’s confidence in its own ecosystem and confirms that stable contributions from teams and dominance on local fields have become the core guiding principles for this award, rather than relying solely on the popularity of star players.