Harry Kane wins the Ballon d'Or
Harry Kane has won the 2026 Ballon d’Or at the London Palladium on Monday, ending a 25 year wait for an English winner since Michael Owen in 2001. The 33 year old Bayern Munich and England captain beat Lamine Yamal and Kylian Mbappe.
Kane sat motionless, pinching his nose in disbelief, before collecting the trophy from Ronaldo and gazing up at a crowd chanting his name. He then drew cue cards from his blazer pocket, opening with “wow, wow, wow” before thanking the voters.
“I am almost speechless. Being here in London has made it extra special. Made it a good omen for me tonight. Thank you to everyone who voted for me. I can imagine it was tough this year.”
Kane turned to Bayern, thanking his teammates and manager Vincent Kompany, who is recovering in hospital. The club signed him in 2023 and he is already seventh on its all time scoring list, having led the Bundesliga scoring charts in three straight seasons.
“To Vinny. I know he is at home or still in the hospital. Wishing you well. I hope this gave you a bit of energy.”
“Since I have been with you I have improved as player, improved as a person and a leader. Thanks to your leadership.”
“Glad to be bringing this trophy back to Bayern Munich.”
Kane then thanked his England teammates and manager Thomas Tuchel for driving standards. England finished third at the World Cup, their best finish since winning it in 1966, after a 3-2 quarter final win over Mexico, with Kane scoring six goals.
“It wasn’t the perfect year, but we had a load of great moments. We built a great bond together. The togetherness in the hotel in the World Cup. An honour to captain you and lead you.”
Kane also thanked former club Tottenham Hotspur, drawing smiles and groans from Arsenal supporters in the room. He named Tim Sherwood, Gareth Southgate and Roy Hodgson among former coaches. He remains Spurs’ all time top scorer with 280 goals in 435 appearances.
“I want to say thank you to Tottenham Hotspur. I wouldn’t be where I am today without Tottenham. I was there from when I was 11 and the club and all the coaches helped me to live my dreams and all of those memories and those ups and downs have led me to where I am today.”
Kane became tearful as he thanked his parents, while his brother and agent Charlie fought back tears beside him. The crowd had earlier risen to chant his name, and he ended by turning to supporters of Bayern, England and Tottenham.
“I remember being a fan not long ago and what it means to play football. It was a dream of mine. Any time I can give back to you guys is an honour and privilege to do so.”
Kane scored 61 goals in 51 games for Bayern, the most by a player in a single season for the club, and 73 goals plus eight assists in 65 matches including England. Only Lionel Messi has scored more in a season this century.
He scored 36 goals in 31 Bundesliga games as Bayern retained the title 16 points clear of Borussia Dortmund, with one defeat, and added a hat trick in the 3-0 DFB Pokal final win over Stuttgart. Bayern also won the German Super Cup.
In Europe he scored 14 goals in 13 Champions League games, but Bayern were narrowly beaten by eventual winners Paris Saint Germain in the semi finals. Kane wins without lifting either the Champions League or the World Cup, the usual prerequisites for the award.
Kane is the fifth Englishman to win, after Stanley Matthews in 1956, Bobby Charlton in 1966, Kevin Keegan in 1978 and 1979, and Owen. Denis Law of Scotland (1964) and George Best of Northern Ireland (1968) are the other winners from the United Kingdom.
He is the first Bayern player to win since Karl Heinz Rummenigge in 1981, and only the fourth overall after Gerd Muller and Franz Beckenbauer. Kane is the fastest player in history to reach 100 Bundesliga goals, doing so in 98 matches.
Kane had also won the men’s striker award earlier.