Platini, Kroos, Emery: Kvaratskhelia Gathers Big Names for 2026 Ballon d'Or

Khvicha Kvaratskhelia is emerging as the name generating the most consensus in the race for the 2026 Ballon d’Or, with the ceremony scheduled for London on October 26. The latest show of support comes from Michel Platini, a three-time winner of the trophy, who declared he was backing « Kvara », saying the Georgian « won the European Cup for Paris Saint-Germain ».

The three-time Ballon d’Or winner joins an already substantial group of supporters, which includes Toni Kroos, Unai Emery and Luis Fernandez. For his part, PSG coach Luis Enrique also made a case for a Paris player at a press conference on Thursday, without however mentioning Kvaratskhelia by name. « For me, the player who deserves the Ballon d’Or is a PSG player. We won the Champions League. Fabian Ruiz won the World Cup too. Ousmane Dembélé is the defending champion… For me the winner should be from Paris, » he said.

The capital club finds itself in a delicate position: unlike Real Madrid, which chose to concentrate its support on Kylian Mbappé, PSG has not yet decided between Dembélé and Kvaratskhelia. Both players can legitimately claim the award, and the club will soon have to designate its official candidate without offending the other.

This 2026 edition is shaping up to be particularly wide open. Beyond the Paris trio, Lamine Yamal and Harry Kane are also among the names regularly mentioned. The list of 30 nominees will be unveiled on September 8, 2026.