Yamal, Mbappe, Kane and Messi Favorites for Ballon d’Or
Lamine Yamal, Kylian Mbappé, Harry Kane, and Lionel Messi are the four favorites among the 30-man shortlist to win the Ballon d’Or at the London Palladium ceremony on October 26, 2000 GMT.
The Contenders at the London Palladium
The Ballon d’Or winners will be announced at 2000 GMT, marking a transition toward a new generation of soccer stars led by Yamal and Mbappé. For years, the trophy remained a personal duel between Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo. Messi stays in the running at age 39 following his performances at the World Cup and winning the MLS Cup with Inter Miami last season. Meanwhile, Yamal helped Spain to the World Cup and Barcelona to the Spanish title, earning the best young player designation for the past two years.
Mbappé enters the shortlist after becoming the highest scorer in World Cup history during an outstanding individual season, though Real Madrid and France missed out on major team trophies over that stretch. On the opposite side, Kane collected titles and broke scoring records with Bayern Munich while helping England finish third at the World Cup. Official judging for the award covers the period from August 3, 2025, to July 19, 2026. Because the judging window closed after the World Cup, Kane’s fast start in the subsequent campaign—including reaching 100 Bundesliga goals in 98 appearances—arrived too late to factor into the voting.
🚨 L’Équipe’s Ballon d’Or 2026 cover today: 🏴 Harry Kane🇦🇷 Lionel Messi🇪🇸 Lamine Yamal🇫🇷 Kylian Mbappé🇫🇷 Ousmane Dembélé“It’s their project.”❗️NOTE: @lequipe is the co-founder and organizer of Ballon d’Or. pic.twitter.com/XMAHTgIgpx
Journalists Vote for Ballon d'Or Winners
The Ballon d’Or is decided by a vote of one journalist from each of FIFA’s top 100-ranked nations. Voters evaluate players based on individual and team performances, decisive and impressive character, and class and fair play. Each journalist ranks 10 players from the 30 nominees, awarding 15 points to the top choice down to one point for the 10th choice. Tiebreakers rely on first-place mentions, followed by second-place mentions.
Messi holds the record with eight Ballon d’Or wins, with his most recent coming in 2023. Cristiano Ronaldo follows with five wins, ending in 2017, while Michel Platini, Johan Cruyff, and Marco van Basten each won three.
The Women’s Contenders
The women’s award will feature a new winner after Aitana Bonmati won the honor for the past three years. Bonmati is absent from the shortlist following a leg fracture sustained in December. Two-time winner Alexia Putellas enters as the favorite to claim a third trophy after winning the Champions League and Spanish title with Barcelona before joining the London City Lionesses. Other leading contenders for the women’s prize include Manchester City’s Khadija Shaw and Barcelona’s Claudia Pina. Additional awards for young talent, goalkeepers, coaches, clubs, strikers, and the Socrates Award for solidarity initiatives will also be presented during the ceremony.
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