Mbappe, Haaland In Class Of Their Own

The dust has barely settled after the 2025 Ballon d’Or ceremony earlier this month, but GIVEMESPORT is already looking ahead and analysing who’s next in line to win the coveted award in 2026.

French forward Ousmane Dembele was crowned football’s best male player after a memorable season in which he helped Paris Saint-Germain win the treble.

He was hardly on anyone’s radar to capture the award before he helped the French club win the Champions League for the first time in their history with a series of explosive attacking performances.

So, who will it be in 2026? That’ll be a little harder to predict.

The award has been based on performances during club seasons rather than a calendar year since 2022. But it’s also often influenced by performances in major international tournaments, meaning that the odds for the 2026 Ballon d’Or are bound to be impacted by the World Cup next year in North America.

Kylian Mbappe and Erling Haaland in a class of their own

Perennial contender Kylian Mbappe is the early favourite to win next year, with bookmakers odds as low as 7/4 and as high as 11/4 to lift the Ballon d’Or for the first time in his illustrious career.

The Real Madrid and France forward ticks all the boxes that are traditionally needed to win the Ballon d’Or as an elite scorer who plays for teams that are strong candidates to win the Champions League and World Cup.

It also helps that he’s off to another scorching start this season. After the 26-year-old finished his debut campaign in Spain with the most goals by a player in their first season with Real Madrid (43), Mbappe has already amassed 26 goals in 22 games across all competitions this season to remain firmly in the conversation as the world’s best player.

Erling Haaland is right behind him. You can get anywhere from 10/3 to 11/2 for the Manchester City striker has been given 7/2 odds to win the award after a similarly red-hot start.

He leads the Premier League in scoring and is among the top scorers in the Champions League.

But that might not be enough.

Haaland could finish the year with another historic goal haul and win trophies with Manchester City, but Norway’s performance at the World Cup could be the deciding factor for Ballon d’Or voters.

Harry Kane and Lamine Yamal have something to say

Harry Kane and Lamine Yamal aren’t too far behind the two favourites.

This is probably Kane’s last and best chance to become the first English player to win the Ballon d’Or since Michael Owen in 2001.

Kane’s 4/1 odds are boosted by the fact the 32-year-old Bayern Munich forward – who has 18 goals in 14 games, 10 more than the second-highest Bundesliga scorer – captains an England team that’s among the favourites to win the 2026 World Cup.

Yamal’s 9/2 odds are also a reflection of Spain’s strong chances of winning its second World Cup

At just 18, Yamal has evolved into a superstar and lived up to the label as Lionel Messi’s heir apparent at Barcelona.

Continued success at Barca and a World Cup with Spain will set Yamal up nicely to become the youngest player to ever win the Ballon d’Or.

Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo and the best of the rest

A bet on Declan Rice could deliver some decent value at 8/1 odds. The English midfielder has been one of the most consistent contributors for an Arsenal side that’s competing to win the Premier League and the Champions League.

However, Rice’s odds will probably plummet if Arsenal fail to win either one of those trophies.

Paris Saint-Germain’s Vitinha is another decent outside bet to win the award, with odds of 20/1.

The Champions League holders will likely end the season with at least one major trophy, but again, it could be Vitinha’s performances at the World Cup with Portugal that determines where he stands in the Ballon d’Or voting.

Bukayo Saka is an attractive bet at 25/1 odds. But, like Rice, his candidacy will be dependent on winning silverware with Arsenal, as well as England’s run at the World Cup.

Despite their age, Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo also have decent shots of winning the award that they dominated for more than a decade.

Messi is fresh off winning Major League Soccer’s top prize with Inter Miami. And although he hasn’t committed to playing in the 2026 World Cup, it’s expected that the 38-year-old will return to compete in his sixth World Cup.

The eight-time Ballon d’Or winner has been given 25/1 odds to recapture the award.

Messi’s 40-year-old rival and five-time winner Ronaldo, who plays in Saudi Arabia with Al-Nassr, has the same odds.

But neither aging superstar has a realistic chance of winning the Ballon d’Or without significant success at the 2026 World Cup.

Just like last year, there’s plenty of time left for Dembele (66/1) to establish himself as a contender again after a slow start to the season. Barcelona’s Pedri (33/1) and Raphinha (40/1), Bayern Munich’s Michael Olise (25/1), and Real Madrid’s Vinicius Jr. (33/1) are among the players capable of gaining traction in the Ballon d’Or race if they can sustain their momentum in the second half of the season and others fall off.

But ultimately, it could come down to what happens at the 2026 World Cup that determines who’ll be the next king of football.