‎Who will win the 2026 Ballon D'or?

[PhilosopherKing]

OP, you should include Lionel Messi in the list because he's FIFA'S boy but I don't think that he will win it this time. I saw his name among the list. I feel that Kane or Yamal has the highest chance of winning Ballon D'or but let's watch out and see who wins it. Kane performance was brilliant in all the competitions he took part in.

I don't see the reason why Messi should be included because Argentina did not win the world cup and apart from his roles in making sure that Argentina got to the finals and his number of goals there was no trophy thet is tied to his name this time. FIFA will focus on the younger generation this time and Dembele has a good chance to win it back to back because he won the France Ligue1 with PSG, the champions League and he was also instrumental for France in the world cup.

Dembele huh ? Even when his country didn't win the world cup. The competition is really kind of high this year it isn't as it was in those years that he win it. Idon't think Demebele will be winning it this time because he didn't even make France win the world cup, even third place bronze match  they still lost to England. General Mbappe too, he too may not win it, he fancies personal achievements more over his team's.

He should know that It is not  just by scoring goals to win the golden boot, it is about scoring goal earlier and when it is actually needed. And if he is in a position where he can't score, it wouldn't make him less Mbappe if he just pass the ball to others to score. He should quit being stingy

My eyes have been on young Yamal to win it, dude got real talent in him, who else agrees?

[Woodie]

Honestly, I think people who vote for these guys are so biased and don't really put into consideration all these contributions towards the game.. if really it was going to be based on impact and contributions I would say Mbappe to win it, but because of his attitude they might not give him the votes to land the Ballon d'Or !

What are the odds that old time favourite "Messi" can return it strange things happening in football these days

Young Yamal isn't ready for this one unfortunately, still needs some polishing 

[danadc]

Honestly, I think people who vote for these guys are so biased and don't really put into consideration all these contributions towards the game.. if really it was going to be
What are the odds that old time favourite "Messi" can return it strange things happening in football these days

Young Yamal isn't ready for this one unfortunately, still needs some polishing 

If they give the Ballon d'Or to Messi, that would be outrageous. He doesn't deserve it. I'd prefer they give it to Rodri again, because he's a World Cup champion, or to someone like Lamine. He's young, yes, but he's a league champion and a world champion. That's what they should see: this year there was a global event that I think has more weight and relevance than the Champions League itself. We still have to wait for the journalists' opinions, since they're the ones in power.

[sokani]

Harry Kane and Kylian Mabappe are my top contenders for the Ballon D'or. Both of them had an excellent performance in their respective club and countries as well. Harry Kane has being robbed off the Ballon D'or once so its only natural that he takes a chance at it this time because he has always being consistent with his performance every single season and has shown what hardwork looks like.

Harry Kane: 65 G/A in all competition last season.
Kylian Mbappe: 60 G/A in all competition last season.

Mbappe bagged some individual awards but due to the fact that Real Madrid didn't win a single trophy last season is the reason I think he can't win it. So my pick is Harry Kane. It just has to be him. He had a fantastic season, won some individual awards and also won all the trophies in Germany.

Does anyone still think that these two should not be leading the Ballon D'or pool even after an extraordinary World Cup performance.

I'm not sure world cup performance will be considered. It's only used in FIFA Best Award.

[Nrcewker]

I think they won’t be looking only at the stats, they will also consider each player’s individual popularity among fans and football enthusiasts. They will take both factors into account before deciding on the winner. In my opinion, Yamal and Mbappe have the best chances because they are both highly popular and have also delivered strong performances with their skills and goals.

Although everyone including me, praises Kane for his outstanding performance, I think he is unlikely to win because his team failed to qualify for the final. So, I don’t think they will give him the award. Let’s see who will be the final choice for the 2026 Ballon d’Or.

[Kelward]

I think they won’t be looking only at the stats, they will also consider each player’s individual popularity among fans and football enthusiasts. They will take both factors into account before deciding on the winner. In my opinion, Yamal and Mbappe have the best chances because they are both highly popular and have also delivered strong performances with their skills and goals.

Although everyone including me, praises Kane for his outstanding performance, I think he is unlikely to win because his team failed to qualify for the final. So, I don’t think they will give him the award. Let’s see who will be the final choice for the 2026 Ballon d’Or.

I don't even know what the selectors actually look at because in the past football fans have always said that the selection processes are biased but then even us fans are biased in our own individual selections so a lot of sentiments comes into play with our own personal selections. Yamal and Mbappe, are exceptionally good players including the other top contenders in their own different Rights, unfortunately it's only one player that would be picked and whoever it is we'll just have to accept it. My top choice is Harry Kane, I think that he's an outstanding player with a lot of charisma but we'll wait and see who gets the top pick, good luck to all of them.

[BitBakerr1]

Ballon D'or don’t even have a clear criteria that they look into and because of this it will be very difficult to predict who is going to actually win it, they choose a different criteria every year especially when they want to favour someone they love.
What I know about Ballon D'or is that it’s an individual award and if it’s an individual award why do they actually consider teams that lifted trophies, I thought it should have been awarded based on a players personal achievement in that season, if they truly see it based on individual achievements then the person that deserves to win the Ballon D'or is no other person than Mbappe, he did very well last season winning the highest goal scorer in 3 great tournament is not easy.

[Crypto_Timothy]

England has a good performance at the world cup especially when they secured the 3rd placement with over 6 goals, although they did not get to the finals, i would say that still counts towards major tournament and the captain has been preforming good in Bayern, racking up goals and all but something tells me somehow Messi can find his way back to the podium. If Mbappe had made it to the finals even if he did not win, my money would have still been on him but nahh i think this is going to be between Kane and a revived Messi and of course im not ignoring Yamal. I think if Messi is not revived for this then Yamal might just take his place and we will see a Kane vs Yamal type situation in Paris.

[Italian Panic]

I don’t think there was a performance at the World Cup quite as outstanding as that of the competition’s winner, except perhaps for Rodri.
As far as I’m concerned, I would give the Ballon d’Or to that force of nature, Kvicha Kvaratskhelia, a complete, all round player who drives any defender mad. He won the Champions League, but the Ballon d’Or should also recognise technical ability, not just victory, that’s what the FIFA Award is for.

[OsaiEmma]

This year, I'm really torn between the options
I don't think any one player has a clear advantage over the others

Some newspapers are also including Vini Jr. and Messi, but I'm not sure if those two are really that big of favorites

If I had to take a guess right now, my best bet would be Harry Kane, based on his performance for both his club and national team

Yeah, Messi and Vini are  definitely in the list, but I doubt if Messi is going to make the top 3 though.


I'm personally rooting for Mbappe. Despite not winning any cup this previous season, he has been really impactful. But that's the issue, he hasn't won any cup, so I doubt twill be him. I don't know man! The ballon d'or ain't following the usual script anymore. Maybe twill be Rodri, both a World cup and best player of the tournament, it is looking so much like him.

Kane only won cups from his club side, same with Rodri too; they both have individual awards but Rodri won the World cup, so I feel Rodri will win.

[Jostern]

It’s difficult to say, there is no real stand out super star like there obviously was for many years with Ronaldo and Messi winning it.

I would probably say Yamal but he hasn’t really been head and shoulders above everybody else, no player has.

Predicting the Winner of the Ballon D’or is going to be quite difficult, there are so many players who had a good tournament at the World Cup, I don’t really know the Criteria they will be using to choose the winner, is it someone who won the World Cup or the Champions League, this are going to be the factors to use in determining the winner of the Award, Messi, Haaland, Kane, Rodri, Mbappé,  all had a good tournament so it’s going to be difficult to choose on a personal performance because there are many of them with good performances at the World Cup.

[Haunebu]

If it were up to me, I would go with Kane since the dude was sensational for a long while now and his stats basically prove that along with helping his team finish 3rd in the WC which is the icing on the cake. Dude was one of the primary reasons why England excelled.

No other choice comes close which is why this was an easy one for me though it's tough to tell who corrupt FIFA will end up choosing at the end. May the most deserving player win it.

[KTChampions]

Kane has scored 14 goals in the Champions League, just one less than Mbappe. At the World Cup he scored 6 goals, which is much less than Mbappe (10), but still very good. If you compare titles, Kane is much better than Mbappé. Mbappé also has a huge disadvantage: he hasn't won a single major title since joining Real Madrid. On the one hand, this is not always critical, but when we are talking about Real Madrid and the player who is expected to become a new legend in its squad, it is of great importance. I think Mbappe is completely out of the discussion this year.

I’d consider mbappe for the top spot in the speculative ranking though, my reasons being that the Ballon D’or is an individual award.. if not for the fact that “ their criteria changes every year just to fit who they later give” lol, I think mbappe deserves it, Golden boots in all the competitions/tournaments he participated in.. that’s impressive as a personal performance.
~

It's clear that winning the Golden Boot in three top tournaments (the World Cup, the Champions League, and La Liga) is the best a striker can do, and it's hard to beat, I agree. However, bookmakers' odds suggest otherwise, and we also know that this is a murky award not based on clear criteria.
Yesterday I saw Ronaldo's opinion on this matter and it made me nervous (because I bet on Kane to win and Yamal not to receive the prize), he thinks that Mbappe should win the prize because last season was not dominant for anyone, but Mbappe is the best in an individual sense (he repeats this argument too).
Ronaldo is influential, maybe his opinion will make someone change their vote.

[Myleschetty]

I'd stick to this ranking. It's because there are strong reasons behind it. Mbappe who got three golden boots in the same season has to be the number one consider D'or is a personal award. Yamal must be in the 2nd place consider he gets three trophies in the same season.
However, a bit disagree to put Kane at the top three because most of his goals were in the farmer league.  

So i feel D'or will be winning by Mbappe or Yamal. That's it. I don't see kane win this and it makes no sense if he wins it. Even i'd rather put Dembele or Rodri above him.

Since the Ballon d'Or panel of journalists always uses players goals, assists, overall impact, talent displayed on the pitch, trophies/titles won with clubs and national teams, and the players significant roles in achieving them, I will also choose this ranking based on the players past and present performances, particularly Kylian Mbappé, who won the adidas Golden Boot award as the top goalscorer of the 2026 FIFA World Cup.

[HelliumZ]

If the Ballon d'Or is chosen for the 2026 FIFA World Cup champion, then I would say that Lamino Yamal will be ahead in that aspect. However, if all aspects are considered, then I think England's Harry Kane is ahead in all aspects and his team in the FIFA World Cup has achieved the third position. However unfortunately if England could have won the championship, then undoubtedly the 2026 Ballon d'Or would have gone to England's Harry Kane.

[Africolo]

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‎Date: October 26, 2026
‎Location: London, England
‎Edition: 70th anniversary ceremony (first time hosted in London)
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‎Hello guys ,now that a new season is starting and also the Ballon d'or award is also coming up, I decided to share my top 5 candidates for this year’s award.
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‎I will be providing  their individual statistic, award and achievements for both clubs and National team.
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‎These are my personal picks, and I would love to hear your own opinions and rankings as well.
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‎CANDIDATES

‎-Harry kane (Bayern Munich/England) FW

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‎Major Season stats (2025-2026) + world  cup
‎ 1. Goals -- 69 goals
‎ 2. Assist --- 8 Assists
‎ 3. Goals contributions --77 goals      contributions
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‎ Major  Trophies/awards
1. ‎Bundesliga 🏆
2. ‎DFL-supercup🏆
3. ‎FIFA world cup Bronze medal (3rd place) 🥉
4. ‎European Golden boot
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‎-Lamine Yamal (Barcelona/Spain) FW

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‎Major Season stats (2025-2026) + world cup
‎ 1. Goals -- 25 goals
‎ 2. Assist ---  17 Assists
‎ 3. Goals contributions -- 42 goals contributions
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‎ Major  Trophies/awards
‎  1. Laliga trophy 🏆
‎  2. Spanish super cup  🏆
‎  3. FIFA world cup Champion 🏆
‎  4. La liga player of the season
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‎-kylian Mbappe  (Real Madrid/France) FW

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‎Major Season stats (2025-2026) + world cup
‎  1. Goals -- 54 goals
‎  2. Assist --- 11 Assists
‎  3. Goals contributions --65 goals  contributions
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‎ Major  Trophies/awards
‎  1. La liga top scorer award Pichichi
‎   2. UEFA Champions Golden boot
‎   3. FIFA world cup Golden boot
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‎-Osumane Dembele (PSG/France) FW

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‎Major Season stats (2025-2026) + world cup
‎  1. Goals -- 25 goals
‎   2. Assist --- 15 Assists
‎   3. Goals contributions -- 40 goal       contributions
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‎ Major  Trophies/awards
‎   1. Ligue 1🏆
‎   2. UEFA champions league 🏆
‎   3.  UEFA super cup 🏆
‎   4.  FIFA intercontinental champions 🏆
   5. ‎ Ligue 1 player of the season
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‎-Rodri (Manchester city/Spain) DMF

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‎Major Season stats (2025-2026) + world cup
‎ 1. Goals -- 2 goals
‎ 2. Assist --- 1  Assists
‎ 3. Goals contributions --3 goal       contributions
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‎ Major  Trophies/awards
‎1. FA cup winner 🏆
‎2. EFL cup winner 🏆
‎3. FIFA world cup winner 🏆
‎4. FIFA world cup golden ball (best player of the tournament)
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‎Drop your opinions 👇👇

Well, all the above listed players performed excellently well in their various leagues but unfortunately Mpappe didn't get to the world cup finals and didn't win a major trophy this season but he has scored a lot of goals and won three golden boats awards and also ranked the highest goalscorer in the world cup history for the moment and if he has won a major trophy to me he deserves to be name the Ballon Dior winner but he's out of the discuss now due to not winning a trophy.

Kane and lamine Yamal are in better position to debate for the award because Yamal won the world Cup and other trophies while Kane placed in third place in the world cup so between this two if the Ballon Dior is awarded to any of them it will be a deserving one without bias, Harry Kane would have been at an advantage if he had won the world cup but I see Yamal winning the Ballon Dior because of his world cup trophy.

[Showlove01]

If the Ballon d'Or is chosen for the 2026 FIFA World Cup champion, then I would say that Lamino Yamal will be ahead in that aspect. However, if all aspects are considered, then I think England's Harry Kane is ahead in all aspects and his team in the FIFA World Cup has achieved the third position. However unfortunately if England could have won the championship, then undoubtedly the 2026 Ballon d'Or would have gone to England's Harry Kane.

Right now we can not really determine who will win the award or not because there are lot of things that will be considered which we do not really know what those things are for now. the only disadvantage Lamine Yamal has is that he does not have goals like other players like Harry Kane and Kylian Mbappe but these two players also has their own disadvantage but the World cup is bigger than other trophies  so lets wait and see what they are going to use as criteria.

[Lida93]

the cup winners, rodri and yamal, didn’t rack up many stats during the season. on the other hand, mbappé and kane’s stats were at a very high level; both scored plenty of goals and performed exceptionally well, but they didn’t even make it to the world cup final.

i think it’s debatable who should win this season, but my top pick is harry kane. even though his team lost in the world cup semifinals and finished third, i believe he was the most impactful player of the season.

Oh yeah. This year's ballon D'or is going to be a bit complicated due to the fact that whoever emerges winner may likely not be appealing to fans, almost all the candidates seem not be worthy of the accolade for one reason or the other, Dembele may have won the UCL for the second consecutive time with PSG but I don't think he is the preferred candidate to emerge winner, for Rodri and Lamine yamal they also were fortunate enough to win the World Cup, yet they don't seem to be favourites, in the case of Kylian Mbappe who won the golden boot in the la'liga and World Cup. It's still not enough to consider him to win the award because he doesn't seem anywhere near that moment to win it.

[atookz]

So far no one has claimed it, but I wouldn't be surprised if everyone came back to Yamal. After a year in which he won the World Cup with Spain and La Liga with Barcelona, it makes sense too. Not to mention he was runner-up the last time behind Dembélé. But, that's not a foregone conclusion. This year, it's really up for grabs, imo. Rodri isn't leaving either: his midfield control throughout the tournament was quite an MVP-level performance to say the least. And although Real Madrid have had a few bumps and bruises this season, Mbappé is now the all-time top scorer in 2026 World Cup history. That's not nothing.

[Distraction]

So far no one has claimed it, but I wouldn't be surprised if everyone came back to Yamal. After a year in which he won the World Cup with Spain and La Liga with Barcelona, it makes sense too. Not to mention he was runner-up the last time behind Dembélé. But, that's not a foregone conclusion. This year, it's really up for grabs, imo. Rodri isn't leaving either: his midfield control throughout the tournament was quite an MVP-level performance to say the least. And although Real Madrid have had a few bumps and bruises this season, Mbappé is now the all-time top scorer in 2026 World Cup history. That's not nothing.

I don't feel like the Ballon d'Or would be given to Yamal. He has been clearly showing that he supports Palestine. He even waved its flag after Barcelona became the La Liga champions.

While there are so many countries which are in business relationship with Israel I think this would also have an affect on to whom this prize will be awarded...

But bookmakers still show him as the 2nd favourite for it. So let's see if I'll be proven wrong.