Mbappé without Ballon d'Or but sole Frenchman with nine consecutive top 10 finishes

Harry Kane was crowned Ballon d’Or 2026, relegating Kylian Mbappé to second place at Monday evening’s ceremony. For France’s captain, who had proclaimed himself the favorite for this edition, the supreme award remains out of reach at almost 28 years old.

Mbappé certainly had solid arguments to make: La Liga’s top scorer and UEFA Champions League top scorer with Real Madrid, World Cup top scorer with the Blues. But an incomplete CV weighed in the balance — no trophies won with either of his teams this season, and a World Cup semi-final loss to Spain where he faded.

Kane himself has won neither the Champions League nor the World Cup. Lamine Yamal, star of the new world champions, was decisive only twice during the campaign in North America (one goal, one assist), which was not enough to propel him to the top.

A record that Platini and Henry did not achieve

If the evening ended in another individual disappointment, Mbappé etched his name in French football history in another way. With this second-place finish, he enters the Ballon d’Or top 10 for the ninth consecutive year — an absolute record for a French player.

Until now, he was already alone in stringing together eight consecutive top 10 finishes in 2025. Michel Platini and Thierry Henry shared the previous record with seven consecutive appearances in the top ten. Platini won the Ballon d’Or in 1983, 1984 and 1985, also finishing third in 1977 and 1980. Henry, meanwhile, finished second in 2003 and third in 2006.

Mbappé has only two podium finishes in total — this second place and a third in 2023 — but his consistency over nine consecutive editions is unmatched in the history of French football. At almost 28 years old, he has several seasons left to try to finally win the title his individual record demands.