Kroos names Kvaratskhelia as major favourite for 2026 Ballon d'Or

Toni Kroos has made his choice: for the former German international midfielder at Real Madrid, Khvicha Kvaratskhelia is the main contender for the 2026 Ballon d’Or, with the ceremony set to take place on 26 October in London.

“It’s probably not the most obvious choice, but it’s number one for me,” Kroos said on social media. The German justified his choice by pointing out the limitations of his direct rivals: “The four players who particularly stood out at the World Cup — Rodri, Messi, Bellingham and Mbappé — had a rather modest season or played in a second-tier league.”

Kroos went further by calling the Georgian “the best player of last season” and “the best player of the best club team in the world,” referring to PSG, winners of the Ligue des Champions. The figures support the argument: in 48 appearances across all competitions, Kvaratskhelia scored 19 goals and provided 11 assists. In the Ligue des Champions, he scored 10 goals and 7 assists, performances that earned him the award for best player in the competition.

The 23-year-old winger does, however, have a weakness in his case: he was absent from the 2026 World Cup, with Georgia not participating in the tournament. Yet the visibility offered by the World Cup traditionally carries weight in the votes of the jury, made up of 100 international journalists from the top 100 countries in the FIFA rankings. The race for the Ballon d’Or therefore remains wide open, but Kroos’s position — a respected figure in world football — should carry weight in the debate to come.