Ballon d'Or website publishes winner articles for Kane, Yamal, Mbappe and Messi

The Ballon d'Or's official website carried articles presenting several different players as award winners before Monday's ceremony, creating confusion over whether the men's result had been revealed early. BBC Sport reported that pages naming Harry Kane, Lamine Yamal, Kylian Mbappe and Lionel Messi had appeared, rather than a single article identifying one winner.

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The Kane article attracted attention as it circulated online ahead of the presentation at London's Palladium Theatre. Its headline declared that the England striker had won the 2026 award. According to the BBC, that circulation began more than four and a half hours before the winner was scheduled to be announced, prompting questions about whether the result had escaped organisers' secrecy.

Further examination of the website showed that Kane was not the only player given that treatment. Similar pieces had been published about Barcelona's Yamal, Real Madrid's Mbappe and Inter Miami's Messi. The existence of articles naming multiple candidates meant the Kane page could not, by itself, be treated as confirmation that he had won the journalists' vote.

BBC Sport reported that the Kane and Mbappe articles were subsequently removed. It remained unclear whether publication had been accidental or why those pages had been taken down. The award is organised by France Football, and journalists had cast their votes at the end of September. The report did not establish that any of the website articles disclosed the actual result.

The issue also extended to the women's award, which was due to be presented on the same evening. Similar articles appeared about London City Lionesses player Alexia Putellas and Barcelona's Ewa Pajor. Both were described by the BBC as leading contenders, but the appearance of those pages did not resolve which player would receive the trophy.

Separately, BBC Sport reported a confirmed placing for Scotland midfielder Caroline Weir, who finished 25th in the women's Ballon d'Or rankings. The 31-year-old, who moved from Real Madrid to Lyon during the summer, had been nominated for a second consecutive year after placing 30th in 2025. Her ranking was a distinct reported result from the competing winner articles on the award's website.