Harry Kane beat Kylian Mbappe by a slender 28 point margin to be crowned as winner of the Ballon d’Or.
Kane claimed football’s ultimate individual honour on Monday night, becoming the first Englishman to win since Michael Owen in 2001.
His success came off the back of a stunning year with Bayern Munich and England, with the forward netting a staggering 73 goals during the 2025-26 season.
Kane’s goals spearheaded Bayern Munich’s domestic Treble, while he also captained England to third place at the World Cup.
A full breakdown of the results has now been revealed, with Kane topping the vote by receiving 1,055 points from an international jury of 100 journalists.
Mbappe, who had also been seeking to win the award for the first time in his career, finished agonisingly short with the Real Madrid and France star receiving 1,027.
Harry Kane won the Ballon d’Or by just a 28-point margin, the full vote breakdown has revealed
Kylian Mbappe narrowly missed out on winning the award for the first time in his career
The gap is shorter than the closely fought battle between Rodri and Vinicius Jr in 2024, with the Spaniard having triumphed on that occasion by just 41 points.
Lionel Messi’s 2019 triumph over Virgil van Dijk is the narrowest margin of recent votes, with just seven points separating the pair.
Previously Matthias Sammer beat legendary Brazilian forward Ronaldo to the honour in 1996 by one point, with the same margin also seeing Sir Bobby Charlton beating Eusebio in 1966, when just 22 people voted.
In total, 40 of the voters had ranked Kane as their top choice, earning him 15 points each time, with Mbappe receiving 23 first place votes by comparison.
Kane was left out of the top ten by two journalists, while three overlooked Mbappe.
Lamine Yamal, who was widely viewed as a front-runner for the award alongside Kane and Mbappe, ultimately ended 174 points behind the winner.
Rodri and Messi completed the top five having earned 726 and 612 points respectively.
Since 2022, the current system is based on voting by a large panel of international journalists from the top 100 FIFA-ranked countries, and top 50 for the Ballon d’Or Feminin. Only a single journalist from each country in these rankings is given a vote.
Lamine Yamal ultimately ended in third place in the vote, finishing 174 points behind Kane
Kane and his wife Kate Goodland shared a kiss after he won the striker award (left) and Ballon d’Or (right) on Monday night
Each journalist must establish a ranking of top ten players from a list of 30 named players also designated by France Football.
A first place vote is worth 15 points, with the number reducing until tenth position, where players secure one point.
Voters are asked to take into account individual performances and their decisive and impressive character.
They are then requested to consider their collective role and the trophies won, before weighing up a player’s class and fair play.
Kane had celebrated on Monday night with friends and family, including his wife Kate, after receiving the award at the London Palladium.
Kane made sure to pay tribute to Kate, who he married in 2019, after seeing off competition from Lamine Yamal and Kylian Mbappe to win.
He said: ‘To my wife, Kate, my best friend. We’ve been through ups and downs for sure. You’re my biggest supporter. I actually felt like you wanted this more than me myself.
‘The anxious wait for us to find out, I know it’s been horrible for you, here it is – we’ve done it! You always want the best for me, you sacrifice yourself to help me achieve my dreams, and I know they’re your dreams as well, so it wouldn’t be possible without you.
‘This is a trophy that we celebrate, not me. This is me and you, it’s all the family, all our close-knit team, so I just want to say thank you, I love you.
‘Can’t wait to enjoy this and celebrate tonight for sure. Love you.’
The couple share two daughters, Ivy and Vivienne, and two sons, Louis and Henry.
And Kane also made sure to reference them in his acceptance speech at the glitzy ceremony at the London Palladium.
‘My kids sat home watching, it’s definitely past your bedtime, especially as we’re [the ceremony] a little later than we hoped,’ he said. ‘So to Ivy, Vivienne, Louis and Henry. You’re the reason I do this.
‘I don’t think you’ll fully maybe appreciate bringing this trophy home. I’ll bring a few others home, but this one is a special one, so I can’t wait to see you and celebrate with you.
‘I want to set a good example being a father but also being a professional and what it means to work hard, what it means to believe in yourself. I love you very much.’
The couple are both from Walthamstow and Kate has been the rock by her husband’s side for years.
Kate is a sports science graduate and professional fitness coach, with 382k followers on Instagram.
The couple posed for photos on the red carpet at the London Palladium Theatre
Kane proposed in the Bahamas in 2017 and they married two years later, now living happily in Bavaria where they have settled well since the striker elevated his game to another level, dominating the Bundesliga.
During his emotional address on stage, he also thanked his parents. He said: ‘Wow, wow, wow. 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. Mum and dad, what a moment. All those years, the sacrifice, the support you gave me. Taking me to training, coming to watch me play. No matter where it was, even to this day you’re there.
‘All those traits you have given me have allowed me to be successful and be here tonight.’
And Kane got royal approval as he hit the summit of world football’s personal awards from Prince William.
‘Huge congratulations to Harry Kane on winning the Ballon d’Or!’ William wrote in a post on Instagram. ‘What a fantastic achievement and so deserved.
‘A brilliant captain, a remarkable player and someone who has given football fans across the world so many unforgettable moments.’
