Vinicius Junior had been seen as the frontrunner to claim the award on Monday night, but Rodri surprisingly was named the 2024 winner.
Vinicius' club Real Madrid boycotted the awards ceremony in Paris with a number of players and pundits displaying their anger online after it was leaked that the Brazilian winger would not win the award.
Richarlison was one of those players and he took to social media to express his thoughts: "All of us who live football eagerly await the individual awards each season. Today, all Brazilians who love football woke up expecting to see another player from our country win an award for the best in the world after so long.
"Unfortunately, for reasons that no one can understand, the award did not come. And don't get me wrong, Rodri is a great player who deserves to be among the best. But Vini not winning the Ballon d'Or was embarrassing, and the only one who lost today was football.
"I remember Vini saying that his dream was to see the whole of Brazil cheering for him. And that day was today! You are a giant and the best in the world, kid! And no trophy will change that. Keep going and never shut up! We're together!"