Kane wins Ballon d’Or, ending England’s 25-year wait; Putellas takes third women’s title

By: Yetunde Okunlola

Harry Kane won the men’s Ballon d’Or on Monday, the first Englishman to take the award since Michael Owen in 2001, while Spain’s Alexia Putellas won the women’s prize for a third time.

The ceremony took place at the London Palladium, marking the 70th anniversary of an award first presented in 1956.

Kane’s season

Kane, 33, was honoured for a 2025/26 season in which he scored 61 goals in 51 appearances for Bayern Munich in all competitions, as the club won the league and cup double. The England captain also scored six goals at the 2026 World Cup, where England reached the semi-finals. He finished ahead of Barcelona forward Lamine Yamal and Real Madrid striker Kylian Mbappé.

Kane said winning in London made the occasion especially meaningful, and he paid tribute to the other nominees.

Putellas returns to the top

Putellas had won the women’s award in 2021 and 2022. She was recognised for her part in Barcelona’s successful 2025/26 season, and her win ended Aitana Bonmatí’s run of three consecutive awards from 2023 to 2025. She joined London City Lionesses in July after 14 years at Barcelona.

Young players and other awards

Yamal won Young Talent of the Year for the third year running, though he said teammate Pau Cubarsí deserved the honour, a moment that drew attention at the ceremony. Barcelona’s Vicky López took the women’s young talent award.

The other winners were:

• Coach of the Year: Spain’s Luis de la Fuente (men) and Barcelona’s Pere Romeu (women).
• Goalkeeper of the Year: Athletic Bilbao’s Unai Simón (men) and Barcelona’s Cata Coll (women).
• Club of the Year: Paris Saint-Germain (men) and Barcelona (women).
• Striker of the Year: Kane (men) and Mexico’s Charlyn Corral (women).
• Sócrates Award: Arsenal and England forward Bukayo Saka, for his humanitarian work through the Big Shoe charity, which supports children with sight-related difficulties.

Website mix-up before the ceremony

Before the ceremony, the official Ballon d’Or website published separate articles naming Kane, Yamal and Mbappé as the men’s winner, then removed them, prompting speculation that the result had been leaked. The BBC attributed a statement to the organisers saying that nominee profiles had been published online by mistake and were not an indication of the results or rankings.

Sources: Reuters, The Independent and Associated Press reporting published on 26 October 2026.