LONDON / RankWire.AI / – Lionel Messi, Kylian Mbappé, Lamine Yamal and Erling Haaland are among the 30 nominees for the 2026 Ballon d’Or. Organizers announced the men’s shortlist on September 8 before the awards ceremony in London on October 26. Ousmane Dembélé, Rodri and Vinícius Júnior also made the field. Harry Kane, Jude Bellingham and Achraf Hakimi feature among the other leading candidates. The London Palladium will stage the ceremony during the award’s 70th anniversary year.
The shortlist spans players from major European clubs and international teams. Paris Saint-Germain has several representatives, including Dembélé, Hakimi, Marquinhos, Nuno Mendes, João Neves, Fabián Ruiz and Vitinha. Khvicha Kvaratskhelia also appears among the club’s nominees. Lautaro Martínez, Declan Rice, Michael Olise, Bruno Fernandes and Sadio Mané add further names to the 30-player group. France Football administers the Ballon d’Or, which evaluates performances across a defined season rather than a calendar year.
Messi returns to the Ballon d’Or shortlist after missing the candidate lists in 2024 and 2025. The Argentine has won the men’s prize eight times, more than any other player. His most recent victory came in 2023. Cristiano Ronaldo remains outside the shortlist for a fourth straight edition. Brazilian forward Raphinha also does not appear among the 2026 nominees. Dembélé enters the latest vote as the reigning men’s winner after receiving the 2025 Ballon d’Or.
Full season forms basis for Ballon d’Or voting
The 2026 assessment period runs from August 3, 2025, through July 19, 2026. It covers domestic leagues, continental tournaments and major international competitions played within that window. The men’s evaluation includes performances at the 2026 FIFA World Cup and the Africa Cup of Nations. Individual performance ranks first among the official voting criteria. Team achievements and titles come next, followed by class and fair play. Those standards apply to every candidate selected for the men’s and women’s awards.
Journalists from eligible countries cast the votes that determine the Ballon d’Or winners. The men’s jury includes one voter from each of FIFA’s top 100 ranked nations. The women’s jury draws representatives from the top 50. Voters rank 10 players from each 30-person shortlist. First place receives 15 points, while tenth place earns one. UEFA works with the organizers on the awards programme, which also recognizes goalkeepers, young players, coaches and clubs across the men’s and women’s game.
London hosts landmark 70th Ballon d’Or edition
The 2026 programme includes additional awards for strikers and the Sócrates Award. Those categories will join the men’s and women’s Ballon d’Or prizes at the October ceremony. London will host the event for the first time since the award began in 1956. The location also connects this edition with the competition’s history. England international Stanley Matthews won the inaugural Ballon d’Or 70 years ago. Aitana Bonmatí enters the event as the reigning women’s Ballon d’Or winner from 2025.
The London Palladium will host the final presentation of the 2026 trophies on October 26. The men’s shortlist brings together Messi, Mbappé, Yamal, Haaland, Dembélé and other prominent players from world football. The women’s competition also has a 30-player field. Voting will determine the winners across the main individual categories and the wider awards programme. The ceremony will close the 70th Ballon d’Or edition with honors based on performances recorded during the stated 2025-26 reference period.
