Voting has closed for the Ballon d'Or - who is favourite to win?
Voting for the 2026 Ballon d'Or closed at the end of Monday 28 September. The result will be revealed on Monday 26 October at the London Palladium, the first time the ceremony has been held in London.
This year marks the 70th edition of the award, and the venue is a nod to the first winner, Stanley Matthews. And fittingly, an Englishman could win it for the first time since Michael Owen in 2001.
Harry Kane goes into the final month as favourite. He scored 73 goals in 65 games for Bayern Munich and England, won the Bundesliga and the European Golden Shoe.
Lamine Yamal is the main threat. He won La Liga with Barcelona and was part of the Spain side that beat Argentina in the World Cup final in July.
Ballon d'Or 2026 Odds
Who's Favourite to Win the Ballon d'Or 2026?
| Selection | Best odds | Best at | Worst odds |
|---|---|---|---|
| Harry Kane | 5/4 | BetVictor | 4/6 |
| Lamine Yamal | 2/1 | Ladbrokes, Coral | 9/10 |
| Kylian Mbappé | 14/1 | Spreadex, Sporting Index | 6/1 |
| Lionel Messi | 18/1 | Unibet, Spreadex, Sporting Index | 12/1 |
| Rodri | 20/1 | Spreadex, BetMGM, 10bet, Sporting Index | 9/2 |
| Khvicha Kvaratskhelia | 33/1 | Spreadex, Sporting Index | 7/1 |
| Michael Olise | 66/1 | Spreadex, Sporting Index | 25/1 |
| Ousmane Dembélé | 125/1 | Spreadex, Sporting Index | 22/1 |
| Fabián Ruiz | 150/1 | Spreadex, Sporting Index | 20/1 |
| Pau Cubarsí | 150/1 | BetMGM, QuinnBet | 150/1 |
Kane is the favourite, with a best price of 5/4, which implies a chance of around 44%. Most bookmakers are much shorter than that, and he is as short as 4/6 elsewhere.
His price shortened as voting closed. Oddschecker's bet history shows William Hill cutting him from 4/5 to 8/11 on Monday, and Sky Bet and Paddy Power moving him from evens to 8/13. Yamal went the other way at the same firms. Sky Bet and Paddy Power pushed him out from 11/10 to 2/1, and William Hill from 6/5 to 6/4.
At 2/1, Yamal's implied chance is about 33%.
The case for Kane rests on his numbers. His Bayern season brought 61 goals, including 36 in the Bundesliga and 14 in the Champions League, and he added six goals at the World Cup, where England finished third.
Yamal's case rests on what he won. He was La Liga's Player of the Season and a World Cup winner. At 19, he would be the youngest winner in the award's history.
Ballon d'Or 2026 Odds: The Outsiders
Mbappé is third favourite at 14/1. He won the World Cup Golden Boot with 10 goals, and he was top scorer in both La Liga and the Champions League, but Real Madrid won nothing.
Rodri won the World Cup's Golden Ball as Spain's captain and is 20/1. Messi won the Silver Ball in a losing final at 39 and is 18/1. Kvaratskhelia was named Champions League Player of the Season as PSG retained the trophy, but Georgia missed the World Cup, and he is 33/1. The reigning winner, Dembélé, is a best price of 125/1.
When is the Ballon d'Or 2026?
The ceremony is on Monday 26 October 2026 at the London Palladium, and it will be shown live on DAZN. It is expected to start at 8pm UK time. The award covers performances from 3 August 2025 to 19 July 2026. One journalist from each of the world's top 100 FIFA-ranked nations votes, ranking 10 players each. Individual performance is weighted first, then team success, then class and fair play.
