Ballon d’Or 2026: Kane narrowly beats Mbappé

English star Harry Kane’s triumph at this year’s Ballon d’Or was decided by a very narrow margin over France international Kylian Mbappé.

In an interview with the “L’Équipe” channel, Vincent Garcia, editor-in-chief of “France Football”, revealed that the contest between the two stars had been decided by a tiny margin, after the France captain had occupied first place in the voting for part of the voting period.

Kane beats Mbappé by fewer than 41 points

After the ceremony held in London, Garcia explained that Mbappé had been leading during the voting month, but the Bayern Munich striker had managed to turn the contest around and eventually take first place.

He said: « Pendant le mois du vote, Kylian était en tête, avant que Kane ne parvienne à revenir. »

He added: « L’écart entre Mbappé et Kane est très faible, inférieur à celui qui séparait Rodri de Vinícius Júnior en 2024, lequel s’élevait à 41 points. »

These statements reveal just how close the race for the trophy was, with Mbappé coming close to fulfilling his dream of winning the Ballon d’Or before finishing the voting in second place, behind the English star.

In addition, the “France Football” editor-in-chief discussed the influence of the division of votes among the Spanish players on the rankings, believing that Rodri benefited from the split in support between him and Lamine Yamal.

Garcia said: « Lorsque nous analysons les votes, nous constatons qu’ils se sont répartis entre Rodri et Lamine Yamal, tous deux champions du monde espagnols. Rodri a obtenu des voix qui auraient pu revenir à Lamine lors de ce scrutin. »

The complete 2026 Ballon d’Or standings

Mohamed Rek |

Editorfr, ar, en

Mohamed Rek- sports content writer with over 10 years of experience creating football content in Arabic and French for platforms such as Foot Africa and Starafrica, combining accuracy, creativity, and audience engagement.

Related teams and leagues

France

England