Harry Kane has won the 2026 Ballon d’Or, becoming the first Englishman in 25 years to claim football’s most prestigious individual award. The England captain and Bayern Munich striker was named the winner at a ceremony at the London Palladium on Monday.
Kane beat Real Madrid striker Kylian Mbappe, who finished second, and Barcelona winger Lamine Yamal, who was third. Lionel Messi finished fifth. It is the 70th edition of the award, voted on by journalists from the top 100 countries in the FIFA rankings.
A record-breaking season
The award caps a remarkable season for the 33-year-old. Kane scored 36 goals in 31 Bundesliga matches as Bayern Munich won the 2025-26 German league title, and he scored in every round of the DFB-Pokal, including a hat-trick in the final against Stuttgart, as Bayern completed a domestic double.
He also scored 14 goals in 13 Champions League matches, as Bayern reached the semi-finals, and netted six times for England at the 2026 World Cup, where England finished third, their best performance since 1966. In total, Kane scored 73 goals across 65 matches in the period considered for the award.
First English winner in 25 years
Kane is the fifth English player to win the Ballon d’Or, after Stanley Matthews, Bobby Charlton, Kevin Keegan and Michael Owen, who was the last English winner in 2001. He is also the first player from a Bundesliga club to win it since Matthias Sammer in 1996.
What Kane said
Accepting the trophy, Kane called the win beyond his wildest dreams and said he was happy to put England back on the map. He spoke about his journey from loan spells in the lower leagues to the top of world football, saying he hoped it would inspire young players.
Spain star Alexia Putellas won the Women’s Ballon d’Or for the third time, while Kane also shared the Striker of the Year award. Paris Saint-Germain were named Men’s Club of the Year.
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