Troy Deeney has left Harry Kane and Kylian Mbappe out of his top three Ballon d'Or picks, instead ranking Lamine Yamal, Michael Olise and Kvicha Kvaratskhelia as the leading contenders. The 2026 Ballon d'Or ceremony takes place on October 26 at the London Palladium Theatre.
It will be hosted in London for the first time to mark the 70th anniversary of the award, given its inaugural winner was England's Stanley Matthews. Due to the number of stars performing at a world-class level over the past year and the lack of a single standout player, the race is considered one of the most difficult to predict in recent times.
Deeney's top 10 rankings
Former Watford striker Deeney, appearing as a pundit on CBS Sports Golazo, ranked his own top 10 based on the 30-man shortlist. He completely omitted Manchester City's Erling Haaland, as well as the two previous winners, Rodri and Ousmane Dembele.
While Real Madrid and France superstar Mbappe, and Bayern Munich and England talisman Kane, made his top 10, they were not deemed to have done enough to enter the top three in Deeney's eyes.
Mbappe and Kane placements
Despite his goal-scoring record, clinching the World Cup and La Liga golden boot awards, Mbappe was placed fifth due to not winning any trophies. Deeney said: “Unbelievable stats, not really a great team player.”
Kane, who won a domestic double with Bayern, was ranked one better in fourth position. Deeney admitted: “From four to two you could go however you want. Unbelievable numbers, won trophies but had a disappointing England campaign.” The striker helped England finish third at the World Cup and scored six goals at the tournament.
Top three revealed
Deeney had ranked William Saliba tenth, Lautaro Martinez ninth, Pau Cubarsi eighth, Fabian Ruiz seventh and David Raya sixth beforehand.
PSG's Georgian forward Kvicha Kvaratskhelia was named as his third-best player above Kane and Mbappe, with Deeney labelling the Champions League and Ligue 1 winner “unbelievable and probably the best winger in world football”.
He placed Kane's Bayern team-mate Michael Olise in second, referring to the Frenchman as the actual best winger in world football after his heroics at both club and international level.
Finally, Deeney named Lamine Yamal as the best player in the world after the teenager won both La Liga with Barcelona and the World Cup with Spain in the summer. Deeney said: “19 years of age. Completed football. It was an easy pick.”
The official full list of men's Ballon d'Or nominees is as follows: Jude Bellingham (England, Real Madrid), Pau Cubarsi (Spain, Barcelona), Marc Cucurella (Spain, Chelsea/Real Madrid), Ousmane Dembele (France, Paris Saint-Germain), Luis Diaz (Colombia, Bayern München), Bruno Fernandes (Portugal, Manchester United), Gabriel (Brazil, Arsenal), Erling Haaland (Norway, Manchester City), Achraf Hakimi (Morocco, Paris Saint-Germain), Harry Kane (England, Bayern München), Khvicha Kvaratskhelia (Georgia, Paris Saint-Germain), Lamine Yamal (Spain, Barcelona), Sadio Mane (Senegal, Al-Nassr), Marquinhos (Brazil, Paris Saint-Germain), Lautaro Martínez (Argentina, Inter), Kylian Mbappe (France, Real Madrid), Nuno Mendes (Portugal, Paris Saint-Germain), Lionel Messi (Argentina, Inter Miami), Joao Neves (Portugal, Paris Saint-Germain), Michael Olise (France, Bayern München), Willian Pacho (Ecuador, Paris Saint-Germain), Julian Quinones (Mexico, Al-Qadsiah), Declan Rice (England, Arsenal), Rodri (Spain, Manchester City/Barcelona), Fabian Ruiz (Spain, Paris Saint-Germain), William Saliba (France, Arsenal), Ferran Torres (Spain, Barcelona/Paris Saint-Germain), Dayot Upamecano (France, Bayern München), Vinicius Junior (Brazil, Real Madrid) and Vitinha (Portugal, Paris Saint-Germain).
