Harry Kane ends England's 25-year wait for Ballon d'Or

Harry Kane has won the 2026 Ballon d'Or, becoming the first Englishman to win football's most prestigious individual trophy in 25 years.

The England and Bayern Munich striker was crowned the best men's footballing talent in the world at a ceremony in London after scoring 73 goals across the 2025/26 season.

Kane won two trophies in Germany and reached the semi-finals of the Champions League with Bayern Munich last season.

He also led England to a third-place World Cup finish, scoring six goals to become the Three Lions' all-time top scorer in the competition.

Kane, who had never finished higher than 10th in the Ballon d'Or previously, beat Barcelona's Lamine Yamal and Real Madrid star Kylian Mbappe to the prize, voted by an international panel of football journalists managed by France Football.

He becomes the first Englishman to win the award since Michael Owen in 2001.

Kane's England teammates Declan Rice and Jude Bellingham finished 15th and 11th in the rankings respectively.

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