Kylian Mbappe, Harry Kane Discuss Ballon d’Or Hopes As Clock Ticks

Real Madrid forward Kylian Mbappé hopes his World Cup exploits could fire him to Ballon d’Or glory as the race for the famous prize heats up.

Mbappé netted 10 goals for France en route to fourth place this summer, winning the Golden Boot and establishing himself as the leading scorer in competition history with 22 goals from as many appearances.

Those numbers, alongside his 42 strikes in 44 games for Real Madrid, automatically propel Mbappé right into the Ballon d’Or conversation, and the Frenchman is hoping to finally get his hands on the prize.

“A lot of people, when they see me in the street, talk to me about the Ballon d’Or, a lot of people talk about me as a possible Ballon d’Or winner. Of course, I made a lot of history this summer in the most important competition in sport, but we’ll see.

“I have the feeling that it’s a good year for that, but there’s still a long time to go and people are free to vote for whoever they think is the best player in the world.”

Harry Kane Still Leads Race After Famous Season

Had France won the World Cup, Mbappé’s case may have been too strong to ignore. Les Bleus actually fell in the third-place playoff to an England side led by the goals of Bayern Munich striker Harry Kane.

Kane struck a mind-boggling 73 goals for club and country last season—a tally bettered only by Lionel Messi (82) in 2011–12—as Bayern romped to Bundesliga glory, earning a reputation as the favorite to win the Ballon d’Or this year.

“I’m extremely proud of the season I put up, for sure,” Kane told TNT Sports. “Not that long ago, I was that fan wanting to become a professional footballer, and I am here now and winning awards and the Ballon d’Or is the same. Of course, now it is out of my hands, it is down to the voters and the people who decide it. The season I had was my best season by far, and we’ll have to wait and see.

“It is a weird one because I am already focused on this season now, and the next season. Can I be better? Can I improve? But I also want to appreciate what I did.

“The thing with football opinions ... there are so many opinions, so many arguments for different players, and people love this player because ‘he’s fast’ and ‘he’s got great IQ’ and ‘his finishing is great.’

“So I think that is what makes football special, all those debates, and the Ballon d’Or is definitely one of them. I’m happy that I am in contention, so we will have to wait and see.”

When Will the Ballon d’Or Winner Be Announced?

For the first time ever, the 2026 Ballon d’Or ceremony will be held in London, with the event scheduled for Oct. 26.

Before that, however, a 30-player shortlist will be revealed on Sept. 8, with those names then presented to one journalist from each of the top 100-ranked nations across the globe. Those selected to vote will pick their top 10, with points awarded to the players based on their rankings on each individual list.

Those points are then tallied up and the final standings will be revealed throughout the day on Oct. 26, before the winner of the prize is crowned at the London ceremony.

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