Men's Ballon d'Or 2026 power rankings: will there be an English winner for the first time in 25 years?
Quick summary
The Guardian publishes its 2026 Ballon d'Or power rankings, spotlighting Harry Kane, Rodri and Kylian Mbappe among the leading contenders and asking whether an English player can win the award for the first time in 25 years.
Full article
Attributed to original sourceWe assess the standing of the players on the shortlist for the award before the winner is announced in October
1) Harry Kane (England/Bayern Munich)
Even adjusting for the goal-drunken Bundesliga, his 61 goals in 51 matches for Bayern last season undersells his all-around impact, considering his playmaking and hold-up skills. Kane was gameplanned out of England’s later games at the World Cup, but he was unstoppable through the last-16 to close out the finest year of his career to date. If not now, when?
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What happened
With the 2026 Ballon d'Or looming, The Guardian has assembled power rankings assessing the sport's elite players. Harry Kane leads the discussion of whether England can end a 25-year drought stretching back to Michael Owen's 2001 triumph. Spain's Rodri and France's Kylian Mbappe are also prominently featured as frontrunners. The piece blends form analysis, trophy weight and narrative factors that traditionally sway voters. It is a snapshot of the current landscape rather than a confirmed shortlist.
Chance analysis
Ballon d'Or power rankings are a recurring fixture of the European football calendar and a useful barometer of how the season's narrative is shaping up among voters. The Guardian framing an English winner as a realistic possibility — with Kane at the centre of the conversation — reflects the strong campaign he has put together and the broader strength of the English contingent at the top clubs. Featuring Rodri and Mbappe alongside Kane underlines that this remains a three-horse conversation at minimum, with the usual caveats about Champions League runs and international tournaments weighting heavily in the final vote. For readers, it is a reminder that the race is wide open and that September is when the contours of the award begin to harden.