Kane snatches Ballon d'Or as Mbappe led voting 'for a long time', France Football editor reveals

Harry Kane won the Ballon d’Or at a ceremony in London, but France Football editor Vincent Garcia has revealed the Bayern Munich striker was trailing Kylian Mbappe in the voting for much of the counting period before eventually pulling clear by the narrowest of margins.

Garcia, whose publication administers the award, said he monitored the results in real time throughout the voting month. “Kylian Mbappe led the race for a long time, but Harry Kane came back into contention, and in the end, it was decided by a very, very small number of points,” he said.

Kane’s victory makes him the first English player to lift the Golden Ball since Michael Owen in 2001. The 31-year-old capped his best-ever individual scoring season at Bayern Munich, while Mbappe — who finished second — had his own compelling case after topping the scoring charts in La Liga, the Champions League and at the World Cup. It is the closest the Real Madrid forward, now 27, has come to winning the award; his previous best finish was third in 2023.

Accepting the trophy, Kane reflected on a career path that included multiple loan spells before he established himself at the top level. “For any young boy or girl who wants to achieve their dream, anything is possible,” he said. “I didn’t go straight to the top, I had to experience a lot of loan moves and fight my way to get to where I am now. I hope that can give you inspiration.”

The evening was not without controversy. Hours before the ceremony, Kane, Mbappe and Barcelona teenager Lamine Yamal were all mistakenly listed as winners on the official Ballon d’Or website in an administrative error that briefly upended the suspense.

Yamal ultimately claimed the Kopa Trophy for the third consecutive year, recognising him as the outstanding young player of his generation. Yet the 17-year-old used his acceptance speech to deflect credit to Barcelona and Spain teammate Pau Cubarsi. “I’d have liked it to be Cubarsi,” Yamal said. “This prize should have been for him. He deserves it.”