Ferré was responsible for the prestigious award for many years and has now described the incident as part of his recollections of the competition’s behind-the-scenes world.
The agent approached Ferré because his client had been nominated for the Ballon d’Or. After explaining the player’s achievements, he asked Ferré whether he could promote the player’s candidacy to the voting jury.
Ferré rejected the request.
“After explaining and highlighting his merits, he asked me if I could, in inverted commas, promote his candidacy to the jury. I obviously said no,” Ferré told Marca.
The situation then took an unexpected turn.
Ferré had to leave the table briefly to answer a telephone call. When he returned, the agent had disappeared, but an envelope had been left behind.
“When I came back, he was gone, but there was an envelope on the table,” Ferré said. “I took it and handed it in at reception. I don’t know what was inside.”
Ferré said the agent never explained what had been in the envelope. The pair subsequently crossed paths several times, but the subject was never raised again.
“The truth is that I have met that agent several times since, and he has never mentioned the envelope or told me what was in it,” Ferré said.
Ferré has also been careful not to claim that the envelope contained money or anything intended to influence the Ballon d’Or vote.
He does not know what was inside it and therefore cannot establish whether the package represented an attempted inducement or something else.
The episode nevertheless provides an unusual insight into the pressure surrounding one of football’s most prominent individual awards, with agents eager to maximise the profile of their nominated players.
Ferré’s account leaves the contents of the envelope a mystery, while his refusal to promote the player’s candidacy meant the request itself went no further.