Kane Edged Out Mbappé By Less Than 41 Points
- 27.10.2026, 10:16
New details on voting for the 2026 Ballon d'Or.
Vincent Garcia, editor-in-chief of France Football , explained why Harry Kane ranked ahead of Kylian Mbappé in vote for the 2026 Ballon d’Or, and also explained how Rodri influenced the chances of Lamina Yamal.
This was reported by RMC Sport.
According to Garcia, the gap between the two main contenders turned out to be smaller than the difference between Rodri and Vinícius Júnior in 2024.
“There were several serious contenders this year. As for the two main ones—Harry Kane and Kylian Mbappé—it all came down to very minor details. The point difference between them is smaller than that between Rodri and Vinícius in 2024. Back then, it was 41 points, and that was already a bit of a gap,” said García.
Barcelona winger Yamal took third place, although he was also considered one of the contenders for the title. Garcia explained that votes for Spanish players may have been split between Yamal and Rodri following the Spanish national team’s success at the World Cup.
“If you analyze the voting, within the Spanish national team—which became world champions—the votes were split between Rodri and Lamine Yamal. Rodri took some of Yamal’s votes,” noted the editor-in-chief of France Football.
According to Garcia, it was difficult for the jury to single out one player from a team that achieved collective success. Moreover, Yamal, he said, started the tournament injured and scored only one goal.
“The votes were split among the Spaniards to some extent. Spain was a team, so it was hard to single out an individual performance. It was difficult for the jury members to determine which of the Spaniards deserved the award more than the others,” Garcia explained.
In the end, Kane won the 2026 Ballon d’Or, Mbappé finished second, and Yamal came in third. Last year, the award went to Ousmane Dembélé of PSG.
France Football will publish the full voting results—including the exact point margins between the players—in its magazine on Saturday.
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