Harry Kane wins Ballon d'Or in London, first English winner since 2001
Harry Kane became the first English player since Michael Owen in 2001 to win the Ballon d'Or when he was crowned the world's best player at a ceremony in London on 26 October 2026. The 33-year-old Bayern Munich striker is the fifth Englishman to claim the award, joining Stanley Matthews (1956), Bobby Charlton (1966) and Kevin Keegan (1978 and 1979).
Kane broke Bayern Munich's goalscoring record for a season in his third campaign at the club, scoring 61 goals in 51 club matches last season. Including his England appearances, he finished the year with 73 goals and eight assists in 65 matches. His previous best finish in the Ballon d'Or voting was 10th.
Kane received the award despite not winning either the World Cup or the Champions League, having been on teams that lost in both competitions' semi-finals. In domestic competition he lifted the German double last season; that success more than doubled his career trophy total, having also won the Bundesliga the season before.
Individually, Kane led the Bundesliga with 36 goals, 17 more than any other player in the division, and scored 14 in the Champions League for the beaten semi-finalists. He netted 10 times in the German Cup, including a hat-trick in the 3-0 final victory over Stuttgart, and added one goal in the German Super Cup. No player has ever scored as many goals in a single season for Bayern, and he is the club's first Ballon d'Or winner since Karl-Heinz Rummenigge in 1981.
Kane's totals place him among the highest single-season scorers in recent history: his 73 goals overall sit behind Lionel Messi's 82 in 2011-12 and alongside seasons such as Gerd Muller’s 72 in 1972-73; Cristiano Ronaldo's 66 in 2011-12 and 2014-15; former Brazil striker Ronaldo's 66 in 1996-97; Erling Haaland's 64 in 2022-23; and Luis Suarez's 64 in 2015-16. The 61-goal club campaign was the most recorded in a season since Cristiano Ronaldo also scored 61 for Real Madrid 11 years earlier.
Former England striker Alan Shearer said: "The winner of the Ballon d'Or should be Harry Kane. His numbers for the last 12 to 18 months have been absolutely sensational for Bayern and for England. For that reason, he should get it." Danny Murphy added: "His goalscoring has been relentless, brilliant. He's had one of the best seasons of his career and it'll be a great reward for him if he gets the trophy. He's been brilliant at Bayern Munich since he's been there, adapted really well and he's been the best centre forward in the world for the last 12 months." Lamine Yamal, who won the World Cup with Spain, had been one of the favourites but lost out to Kane, while "Last year, winning the Champions League helped PSG and France's Dembele to the crown."
Kane has continued his scoring run into the new season, with 10 goals in his opening 12 games for Bayern and six goals in four Nations League matches for England, a total of 16 goals in 16 matches so far. Bayern are unbeaten in the Bundesliga and Champions League this season.
