The shortlist for the 2026 Ballon d'Or has been announced, featuring Ousmane Dembele, Kylian Mbappe, Lamine Yamal, and Harry Kane among the top contenders. The nominees were revealed by France Football magazine on September 8, 2026, with the winners set to be announced at a ceremony in London on October 26.
Dembele, the previous year's winner, is joined by Kane and Mbappe as favorites for the men's award. In the women's category, nominees include two-time winner Alexia Putellas, Ewa Pajor, and Melchie Dumornay, while Aitana Bonmatí, the winner of the past three awards, did not make the shortlist due to injury.
Both Dembele and Mbappe represented France in the World Cup, where the team reached the semifinals but lost to Spain, the eventual champion. Mbappe made history by becoming the all-time leading World Cup goal scorer with 22 goals. Dembele, after winning a second consecutive Champions League title with Paris Saint-Germain, has the opportunity to retain his title.
Kane had a standout season, scoring 73 goals for club and country and winning the Bundesliga title with Bayern Munich, while also leading England to a third-place finish in the World Cup.
Spain's captain Rodri, who won the award in 2024, is also nominated after playing a key role in Spain's World Cup victory. Lionel Messi, with a record eight Ballon d'Or awards, is on the shortlist after guiding Argentina to a runner-up finish in the World Cup and winning the MLS with Inter Miami. Other notable players not included in the list are Karim Benzema, Cristiano Ronaldo, and Luka Modric.
Dembele was one of nine PSG players nominated for the men's award, which included Achraf Hakimi, Marquinhos, Nuno Mendes, Willian Pacho, Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, Joao Neves, Fabian Ruiz, and Vitinha. In an interview, Dembele expressed confidence that the award would remain with a PSG player and mentioned Kvaratskhelia, Kane, and Mbappe as his top three picks.
The list of other nominees includes Real Madrid players Vinicius Junior and Jude Bellingham, and Manchester City striker Erling Haaland. Notably, Italy, which did not qualify for the World Cup, and the Netherlands and Germany had no representatives on the list. Only one player from Serie A, Lautaro Martínez of Inter Milan, was selected.
No goalkeeper was nominated this year, meaning Lev Yashin remains the only goalkeeper to have won the trophy, which he achieved in 1963. The Ballon d'Or ceremony is moving from Paris to London this year to commemorate the 70th anniversary of the first award, which was won by Stanley Matthews.
The Ballon d'Or, established by France Football, has been awarded since 1956 for men and since 2018 for women. Voting is conducted by journalists from the top 100 countries in the FIFA rankings for the men's award and the top 50 for the women's award. Each journalist selects players in ranked order, with points attributed to each position. The player with the most points wins the award. The criteria for the award include individual performances, collective performances and titles won, and fair play, with the performance period considered from August 3, 2025, to July 19, 2026.