The Ballon d'Or marks its 70th anniversary this year, with the men's and women's award ceremony set for London's Palladium Theatre on October 26. It is the first time the ceremony has been held in London rather than Paris.
France Football remains the organiser of the Ballon d'Or award and voting, with the ceremony co-organised alongside UEFA. The award was originally reserved for Europe's best men's player before expanding to non-European players in 1995 and becoming a global award in 2007. The women's Ballon d'Or was introduced in 2018, with Ada Hegerberg as the inaugural winner.
According to UEFA, the move to London is a tribute to former England footballer Stanley Matthews, who won the inaugural Ballon d'Or in 1956.
The ceremony begins at 8:00 PM GMT on October 26, which is 1:30 AM IST on October 27. A total of 13 awards will be presented, including the Kopa, Yashin, Gerd Müller and Johan Cruyff trophies.
According to L'Équipe, reported a day before this update, Real Madrid plans to end its boycott of the ceremony and attend this year's event after skipping it in 2024 and 2025 following a dispute over Vinícius Júnior's runner-up finish. Kylian Mbappé, among this year's leading contenders, has confirmed he will attend in London after the Clásico.
Top 10 Frontrunners for Ballon d'Or 2026
- Harry Kane: Among the bookmakers' favourites, the Bayern Munich forward scored 73 goals for club and country in 2025-26, the second-best single-season mark in history after Lionel Messi's 82 in 2010-11. He topped Europe's overall club goalscoring chart for 2025-26 and finished fifth in the scoring charts as England won bronze at the FIFA World Cup 2026.
- Lamine Yamal: The Barcelona and Spain forward has already won the Kopa Trophy for the best under-21 player in 2024 and 2025 and is in contention for both the men's Ballon d'Or and another Kopa award. He played a key role in Spain's World Cup 2026 triumph and in Barcelona's La Liga and Spanish Super Cup-winning season.
- Kylian Mbappé: Despite France's semifinal exit at the World Cup, the Real Madrid forward won the Golden Boot with 10 goals, becoming the tournament's all-time top scorer. He also scored 42 goals for Real Madrid across all competitions in 2025-26.
- Lionel Messi: Fresh off winning Spain's Princess of Asturias Award, the eight-time Ballon d'Or winner led Argentina to the World Cup 2026 final, where they lost to Spain. Messi scored eight goals in the tournament, two fewer than Mbappé. For Inter Miami in MLS, he scored 29 goals in 32 appearances as the club sits second in the current standings.
- Rodri: Despite missing most of the past two seasons through injury, the Manchester City midfielder helped lead Spain to their second World Cup title and was named the tournament's best player.
- Erling Haaland: The Manchester City striker was the Premier League's top scorer in 2025-26 with 27 goals, netting 38 across all competitions, and became the fastest player to reach 50 Champions League goals, doing so in 49 games. At the World Cup 2026, he took Norway to their best-ever finish, the quarterfinals, scoring seven goals.
- Jude Bellingham: The Real Madrid midfielder managed only 13 goals in 2025-26 due to injuries but peaked at the right time, scoring seven goals at the World Cup 2026 - the first by an England midfielder - to finish as the tournament's third-highest scorer.
- Pau Cubarsí: A favourite for the Golden Boy award after finishing runner-up in 2024, the Barcelona defender netted 22 goals in 36 matches last season and played a key role in Spain's World Cup 2026 triumph.
- Michel Olise: The Bayern Munich forward has established himself as one of the best attackers in the world, and remains in the discussion despite not having his best individual season.
- Ousmane Dembélé: Had France won the World Cup, the PSG forward would have been among the favourites for a second successive Ballon d'Or after already winning the Champions League with the club. Dembélé finished the season as PSG's top scorer and also won the Champions League's top scorer award.
