Overview
- France Football released the 30‑player men’s and 30‑player women’s shortlists for the 2026 Ballon d’Or, with the winners to be announced at a London ceremony on Oct. 26 and the voting window covering Aug. 3, 2025 to July 19, 2026.
- Harry Kane is widely viewed as the leading favourite after a prolific season that media report included 73 goals for club and country and a Bundesliga title with Bayern Munich.
- Paris Saint‑Germain supplies an outsized share of male nominees — nine or ten players — while defending champion Ousmane Dembélé, Lionel Messi at 39 and the notable omission of Cristiano Ronaldo all shape the field.
- Real Madrid and prominent figures have mounted a public PR push for Kylian Mbappé and other high‑profile pundits and players have openly backed candidates, underscoring active campaigning ahead of the journalists’ vote.
- Journalists from the top 100 countries for men and top 50 for women will rank their top 10 using France Football’s criteria of individual performances, collective titles, and class and fair play, with World Cup outcomes likely to be decisive in close cases.