Kane tops The Athletic ranking with Mbappé just outside the podium
Harry Kane leads The Athletic’s 2026 Ballon d’Or ranking, with Real Madrid’s Kylian Mbappé fourth and Jude Bellingham ninth.
Harry Kane leads The Athletic’s ranking of the leading contenders for the 2026 Ballon d’Or. Kylian Mbappé sits fourth, while Jude Bellingham is the second Real Madrid representative in the top 10, occupying ninth place.
The list is an editorial assessment published after France Football revealed the official 30-man shortlist. It is neither the result of the Ballon d’Or vote nor an official prediction from the award’s organisers.
MBAPPÉ’S NUMBERS MAKE A POWERFUL CASE
The Athletic placed Mbappé behind Kane, Michael Olise and Rodri. Real Madrid’s failure to secure a major trophy counts against the Frenchman, but his individual campaign remains impossible to dismiss.
Mbappé scored 40 goals in 42 LaLiga and Champions League appearances for Madrid. He then struck 10 times at the World Cup, earning a second successive World Cup Golden Boot. His career tally of 22 goals in 22 tournament appearances also made him the leading scorer in World Cup history.
Fourth place therefore says more about the weight given to collective honours than it does about Mbappé’s performance. He consistently delivered during a difficult campaign for Madrid and produced numbers worthy of a serious Ballon d’Or challenge. The official vote will reveal whether that individual excellence can outweigh the absence of a major team trophy.
BELLINGHAM COMPLETES MADRID’S PAIR
Bellingham ranks ninth after a club season disrupted by his recovery from shoulder surgery and a hamstring injury. He still registered eight goals and five assists across 37 LaLiga and Champions League matches.
His World Cup performances strengthened his case considerably. Bellingham scored decisive goals against Mexico and Norway during the knockout rounds and finished the tournament with seven. His movement, positional flexibility and understanding with Kane also received recognition in The Athletic’s assessment.
THE ATHLETIC’S FULL TOP 10
Kane leads the list after scoring 73 goals for Bayern Munich and England while winning three domestic trophies with the German club. Olise takes second place, with World Cup-winning midfielder Rodri completing the provisional podium.
The full ranking is:
- Harry Kane
- Michael Olise
- Rodri
- Kylian Mbappé
- Erling Haaland
- Khvicha Kvaratskhelia
- Lamine Yamal
- Luis Díaz
- Jude Bellingham
- Lionel Messi
AN EDITORIAL RANKING, NOT THE FINAL VERDICT
Both Mbappé and Bellingham are part of the official 30-man shortlist, but The Athletic’s order remains an editorial opinion. The winner will be announced at the ceremony in London on October 26.
Real Madrid consequently have two players inside this top 10. Mbappé may currently sit one place outside the podium, but 40 club goals and a historic World Cup campaign give him a legitimate case to finish considerably higher when the actual votes are counted.
