Harry Kane has finally got his hands on the Ballon d’Or. On Monday night, 26 October 2026, the England captain was named the men’s winner at the London Palladium. Nobody from England had won it in 25 years, so this one means a lot back home.
Maybe you fell asleep before the end and woke up wondering who won the Ballon d’Or. It’s simple: Kane did. Below, you’ll find the Ballon d’Or 2026 winner story, how he earned it, who ended up behind him, and what South African fans should know.
Who Won the 2026 Ballon d’Or?
Harry Kane took the 2026 Ballon d’Or after a huge year with Bayern Munich and England. The 70th Ballon d’Or ceremony was held in London, and reports say around 100 journalists cast the votes.
Kane is 33 now. The last Englishman to win was Michael Owen back in 2001. Plenty of good English players came close over the years, but none of them got there. Kane did.
Kylian Mbappe finished second. Lamine Yamal of Barcelona came third. Yamal had a brilliant season too, so his spot on the podium tells you how tight the race was.
A Season of Goals
Why did Kane win? Honestly, the reason is easy to see. He just kept scoring, week after week, in every competition.
Over the 2025 to 2026 season he netted 73 goals for club and country. For Bayern Munich, he scored 61 times in 51 games. Of those, 36 came in the Bundesliga, and that earned him the European Golden Shoe. Bayern also lifted the Bundesliga title and the DFB Pokal.
Earlier this season he also became the quickest player ever to reach 100 Bundesliga goals. Not many strikers in Europe can say that.
Want the main Harry Kane stats in one place? Here they are.
| Measure | Figure |
|---|---|
| Total goals for club and country | 73 |
| Goals for Bayern Munich | 61 in 51 games |
| Bundesliga goals | 36 |
| World Cup goals for England | 6 |
| Trophies with Bayern | Bundesliga and DFB Pokal |
The World Cup Factor
The World Cup was the big question mark. Spain won it, and Rodri was named the best player at the tournament. A lot of people thought the prize might go to someone from the winning team.
Kane still made his case. He scored six goals, and England got to the semifinals. He also went past Gary Lineker as England’s best scorer at a single World Cup. England lost to Argentina in the last four, so he went home without a medal.
Still, the voters looked at the full picture. His goals and his steady form all year seemed to matter most. To put it in simple words, nobody scored like he did, and he did it when it counted.
Why This Win Matters for England
Very few English players have ever won this award. The full list is short, and it shows just how rare this moment is.
| Player | Year |
|---|---|
| Stanley Matthews | 1956 |
| Bobby Charlton | 1966 |
| Kevin Keegan | 1978 and 1979 |
| Michael Owen | 2001 |
| Harry Kane | 2026 |
So Kane becomes the fifth Englishman on that list. There’s a lovely story in it too. He grew up in London, and his win was announced in his home city. When he walked up to collect the trophy, the crowd at the Palladium chanted his name.
For years, people didn’t really see Kane as a Ballon d’Or player. In the 2024 vote he finished tenth. Since moving to Germany, his game has gone up a level, and this win proves it.
Alexia Putellas Wins Again
It was a big night for Alexia Putellas as well. The London City midfielder won the women’s prize for a third time, just before Kane’s moment.
Putellas took her first award in 2021, so winning a third one shows how long she’s stayed at the very top. The Alexia Putellas Ballon d’Or story is a proud one for women’s football, and the Palladium crowd clearly felt it.
A Messy Start to the Evening
The night didn’t go smoothly. A few hours before the show, the official website briefly showed the winners by mistake. For a short time, Kane, Yamal and Mbappe were all listed as winners, and fans online were confused.
Then the start was delayed by 30 minutes. A little over two hours later, Kane’s name was finally called.
Leaks aren’t new here. In 2024, Real Madrid stayed away from the ceremony after hearing that Vinicius Junior had lost to Rodri. Ever since, organisers have tried hard to keep the result secret until the big moment.
Who Won the Ballon d’Or in 2025?
Some readers also ask who won the Ballon d’Or 2025. That one went to Ousmane Dembele of Paris Saint Germain, after a historic treble for his club. Yamal finished well behind him.
So Yamal has now been a runner up and then a third place finisher in back to back years. He’s still a teenager, so most fans believe his turn will come.
Where Can I Watch the Ballon d’Or Ceremony?
Plenty of South Africans have been asking where can I watch the Ballon d’Or ceremony and what channel is the Ballon d or on DStv. To be honest, the reports we checked didn’t clearly confirm the exact channel or the Ballon d’Or time for South Africa.
Here’s an easy way to sort it out next time.
- Check your DStv guide a few days before the event.
- Look at football broadcasters such as DAZN to see if there’s any DAZN live coverage.
- Visit the official Ballon d’Or website, which often lists broadcast partners and any Ballon d’Or live stream options.
This year’s show took place in London and started in the evening there. London is an hour behind South Africa, so it ran late for local viewers. If you missed it, highlights and short clips are simple to find online.
The official site is ballondor.com. It’s the best place to check the rankings, the nominees and the full results.
Ballon d’Or 2026 Rankings and Top 10
A lot of fans want the Ballon d’Or 2026 rankings and the full Ballon d’Or top 10. The top three are clear: Kane first, Mbappe second and Yamal third.
For places four to ten, the official results from France Football and the Ballon d’Or website are the safest source. We haven’t listed those names here, because we don’t want to guess.
Before the ceremony, the Ballon d’Or nominees included Kane, Yamal, Mbappe, Rodri and Khvicha Kvaratskhelia. Every one of them had a real case, which shows how open things looked until the last few weeks.
What Kane Said Before the Night
In the weeks leading up to the ceremony, Harry Kane kept his answers calm. He said he’d be really happy to win after a great year. He also said the result wasn’t in his hands, and that he’d done all he could.
He even admitted it was hard not to think about it as the date got closer. Those words look even better now. He stayed patient and let his football speak for him.
What Comes Next
Kane heads back to Bayern Munich now. The new season is already in full swing, and he’ll want to keep scoring. There’s no sign he plans to slow down.
For England, this award is a real lift. Fans will hope a Ballon d’Or winner can help the Three Lions go one step further at the next big tournament.
Final Thoughts
The Ballon d’Or race for 2026 was close, but the answer is clear now. Harry Kane is the winner, and English football’s 25 year wait is over. His goals, his Bundesliga title and his World Cup run all played a part.
So if you ever need to check who won Ballon d’Or 2026, remember the Ballon d’Or winner 2026 is Harry Kane. He’s the first Englishman since Michael Owen to lift the trophy, and he did it in front of his home crowd.
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