Dembele's Winchester City link revived by Ballon d'Or red carpet exchange
Ousmane Dembele's long-running Football Manager connection with non-league Winchester City resurfaced at the Ballon d'Or ceremony, where a club shirt photo drew a reply from the PSG star.
Ousmane Dembele's unlikely link with English eighth-tier club Winchester City has been revived after an exchange at Monday's Ballon d'Or ceremony in London. The Paris St-Germain and France forward finished seventh in the men's award, which was won by Bayern Munich and England striker Harry Kane, a year after Dembele himself took the prize following PSG's Champions League, Ligue 1 and Coupe de France treble.
The connection dates back to the popular computer game Football Manager, in which Dembele guided Winchester City up the English pyramid while representing France at the 2018 World Cup in Russia. During that tournament, a France national team social media video showed Dembele and team-mate Antoine Griezmann joking about bringing the World Cup to Winchester.
Winchester City manager Craig Davis told BBC Radio Solent that contact with the player had faded since those days. The story resurfaced when a member of the club's media team attended the ceremony's red carpet with a Winchester shirt and posted a photo on social media with Dembele in the background. According to Davis, Dembele replied with emojis, and the club has since leaned into the renewed attention.
Winchester City play in the Isthmian South Central Division and sit third after 14 matches, having won five of their past six league games. Davis said the club hopes to return to the Southern League Premier Division One South. He added that Winchester would be open to inviting Dembele in future, though he joked that a seven-day approach would not be enough to sign him.
The episode pairs one of football's biggest names with a humble Hampshire club, and Davis acknowledged the link is tenuous but worth embracing. The club intends to try for further responses from Dembele, while supporters' interest has grown around a story rooted in a video game rather than any official connection.
