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2026 Ballon d’Or Ceremony Given to Safest Pair of Hands in U.S. Soccer Coverage

A former Ballon d’Or runner-up will help crown this year’s winner.
Grey Whitebloom|
The Ballon d’Or ceremony will be held in London this year.
The Ballon d’Or ceremony will be held in London this year. | FRANCK FIFE/AFP/Getty Images

The Ballon d’Or organizers have announced that the CBS Sports duo of Kate Scott and Thierry Henry will host this year’s ceremony.

Scott, a multilingual English broadcaster with a long track record of excellent coverage, was standing to the side of the podium performing this role just last year. 1987 Ballon d’Or winner Ruud Gullit was her right-hand man on that occasion, but this month Scott will be joined by her familiar partner-in-crime, Henry.

The affable pairing make up half of the immensely popular CBS Sports panel on Champions League nights in the U.S. Given the international edge Scott and Henry offer, it’s perhaps no surprise that the Ballon d’Or has continued to overlook Jamie Carragher and Micah Richards even in their post-playing careers.

When Is the 2026 Ballon d’Or Ceremony

  • Date: Monday, Oct. 26
  • Red carpet start: 2 p.m. ET / 11 a.m. PT / 6 p.m. GMT
  • Official ceremony: 4 p.m. ET / 1 p.m. PT / 8 p.m. GMT
  • Winners’ press conference: 6:30 p.m. ET / 3:30 p.m. PT / 10:30 p.m. GMT

Where Is the 2026 Ballon d’Or Ceremony?

Thierry Henry (left) and Kate Scott.
Thierry Henry (left) and Kate Scott are a safe pair of hands. | Mark Sutton/Formula 1/Getty Images

As the brainchild of France Football magazine, whose name is not misleading, the Ballon d’Or ceremony has traditionally been held in Paris, with the spectacular Théâtre du Châtelet a favorite venue. However, for the first time since 2016, the award will venture beyond France’s capital.

London’s Palladium will be the venue this year, which is a special year for the award. On the 70th anniversary of the inaugural victor, England’s Sir Stanley Matthews, the organizers are taking the trophy back to the first country in which it was ever handed out.

Back in 1956, it was a compact version of the prize, a small ball glued onto a wooden stand, which was given to Matthews in Blackpool Town Hall.

How to Watch the 2026 Ballon d’Or Ceremony?

Lionel Messi looking at a screen.
All eyes will be on the Ballon d’Or. | FRANCK FIFE/AFP/Getty Images

For most viewers, the Ballon d’Or ceremony will be available for free by completing a straightforward sign-up for DAZN. This applies to all onlookers in the United States, Mexico, Canada and the United Kingdom.

Beyond simply crowning the best men’s and women’s players, prodigies, managers and goalkeepers in the world, the ceremony offers future stars of the game a chance to dream.

“We all watched that ceremony with those red carpet arrivals and said to ourselves: One day, that will be me,” Kylian Mbappé, one of the frontrunners for this year’s award, once gushed.

“I’m sure many dream of these moments, imagining the nerves of waiting for their ranking to be revealed, sitting next to the greatest players on the planet. In fact, that’s it: the Ballon d’Or reawakens our childhood dreams. We’ve won titles, other awards, but this one is the Holy Grail. It’s the ticket to the big world.”

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Grey Whitebloom
GREY WHITEBLOOM

Grey Whitebloom is an Associate Editor for SI FC. He has more than half a decade of experience in sports media across all its various guises, from the fast-paced demands of news articles and match reports to in-depth research required for features. Whitebloom graduated with a First Class Honours from University College London and found himself named on the Dean’s List—which, despite his initial fears, was a form of praise rather than a punishment. He specialises in the Premier League and Champions League, while also boasting an extensive track record of La Liga coverage.

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