The nominees for the 2026 Ballon d’Or were revealed Tuesday. The shortlists for the men’s and women’s awards feature 30 players each.
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Men’s Ballon d’Or | Women’s Ballon d’Or | Young Talent | Goalkeeper | Coach | Best Club
Spanish World Cup winners Rodri and Lamine Yamal headline the contenders for the men’s honor, though Kylian Mbappe is a strong candidate after his record-breaking performance at the 2026 World Cup for France.
England striker Harry Kane is also in contention after his prolific scoring season with Bayern Munich, while eight-time Ballon d’Or winner Lionel Messi is back on the shortlist this year after missing out in 2025.
On the women’s side, Spanish star Aitana Bonmati wasn’t nominated after an injury-marred year, ending her run of three consecutive triumphs and ensuring there will be a different winner for the first time since 2022. Alexia Putellas, her compatriot and former Barcelona teammate, is a strong contender to take home the award for the third time in her glittering career.
This year’s Ballon d’Or ceremony will take place in London on Monday, Oct. 26, when the award winners will be crowned.
Ballon d’Or nominees – Men
| Player | Club |
|---|---|
| Jude Bellingham 🏴 | Real Madrid |
| Pau Cubarsi 🇪🇸 | Barcelona |
| Marc Cucurella 🇪🇸 | Real Madrid |
| Ousmane Dembele 🇫🇷 | PSG |
| Luis Diaz 🇨🇴 | Bayern Munich |
| Bruno Fernandes 🇵🇹 | Manchester United |
| Gabriel 🇧🇷 | Arsenal |
| Erling Haaland 🇳🇴 | Manchester City |
| Achraf Hakimi 🇲🇦 | PSG |
| Harry Kane 🏴 | Bayern Munich |
| Khvicha Kvaratskhelia 🇬🇪 | PSG |
| Lamine Yamal 🇪🇸 | Barcelona |
| Sadio Mane 🇸🇳 | Al-Nassr |
| Marquinhos 🇧🇷 | PSG |
| Lautaro Martinez 🇦🇷 | Inter Milan |
| Kylian Mbappe 🇫🇷 | Real Madrid |
| Nuno Mendes 🇵🇹 | PSG |
| Lionel Messi 🇦🇷 | Inter Miami |
| Joao Neves 🇵🇹 | PSG |
| Michael Olise 🇫🇷 | Bayern Munich |
| Willian Pacho 🇪🇨 | PSG |
| Julian Quinones 🇲🇽 | Al-Qadsiah |
| Declan Rice 🏴 | Arsenal |
| Rodri 🇪🇸 | Barcelona |
| Fabian Ruiz 🇪🇸 | PSG |
| William Saliba 🇫🇷 | Arsenal |
| Ferran Torres 🇪🇸 | PSG |
| Dayot Upamecano 🇫🇷 | Bayern Munich |
| Vinicius Junior 🇧🇷 | Real Madrid |
| Vitinha 🇵🇹 | PSG |
2025 winner: Ousmane Dembele
Ballon d’Or nominees – Women
| Player | Club |
|---|---|
| Selma Bacha 🇫🇷 | OL Lyonnes |
| Barbra Banda 🇿🇲 | Orlando Pride |
| Esmee Brugts 🇳🇱 | Barcelona |
| Klara Buhl 🇩🇪 | Bayern Munich |
| Mariona Caldentey 🇪🇸 | Arsenal |
| Scarlett Camberos 🇲🇽 | Club America |
| Kerstin Casparij 🇳🇱 | Manchester City |
| Temwa Chawinga 🇲🇼 | Kansas City Current |
| Cata Coll 🇪🇸 | Barcelona |
| Melchie Dumornay 🇭🇹 | OL Lyonnes |
| Alex Greenwood 🏴 | Manchester City |
| Patri Guijarro 🇪🇸 | Barcelona |
| Caroline Graham Hansen 🇳🇴 | Barcelona |
| Pernille Harder 🇩🇰 | Bayern Munich |
| Yui Hasegawa 🇯🇵 | Manchester City |
| Rose Lavelle 🇺🇸 | Gotham FC |
| Mapi Leon 🇪🇸 | London City Lionesses |
| Lorena 🇧🇷 | Kansas City Current |
| Melvine Malard 🇫🇷 | Chelsea |
| Manaka Matsukubo 🇯🇵 | Chelsea |
| Vivianne Miedema 🇳🇱 | Manchester City |
| Ewa Pajor 🇵🇱 | Barcelona |
| Claudia Pina 🇪🇸 | Barcelona |
| Alexia Putellas 🇪🇸 | London City Lionesses |
| Wendie Renard 🇫🇷 | OL Lyonnes |
| Alessia Russo 🏴 | Arsenal |
| Khadija Shaw 🇯🇲 | Manchester City |
| Momoko Tanikawa 🇯🇵 | Bayern Munich |
| Caroline Weir 🏴 | OL Lyonnes |
| Tessa Wullaert 🇧🇪 | Como |
2025 winner: Aitana Bonmati
Young Talent of the Year
Men’s nominees
| Player | Club |
|---|---|
| Kerim Alajbegovic 🇧🇦 | Juventus |
| Ayyoub Bouaddi 🇲🇦 | Manchester City |
| Pau Cubarsi 🇪🇸 | Barcelona |
| Yan Diomande 🇨🇮 | Real Madrid |
| Lennart Karl 🇩🇪 | Bayern Munich |
| Eli Junior Kroupi 🇫🇷 | Bournemouth |
| Lamine Yamal 🇪🇸 | Barcelona |
| Johan Manzambi 🇨🇭 | Aston Villa |
| Ibrahim Maza 🇩🇿 | Bayer Leverkusen |
| Warren Zaire-Emery 🇫🇷 | PSG |
2025 winner: Lamine Yamal
Women’s nominees
| Player | Club |
|---|---|
| Veerle Buurman 🇳🇱 | Chelsea |
| Vicky Lopez 🇪🇸 | Barcelona |
| Felicia Schroder 🇸🇪 | Real Madrid |
| Clara Serrajordi 🇪🇸 | Barcelona |
| Lily Yohannes 🇺🇸 | OL Lyonnes |
2025 winner: Vicky Lopez
Goalkeeper of the Year
Men’s nominees
| Player | Club |
|---|---|
| Yassine Bounou 🇲🇦 | Al-Hilal |
| Thibaut Courtois 🇧🇪 | Real Madrid |
| Gregor Kobel 🇨🇭 | Borussia Dortmund |
| Joan Garcia 🇪🇸 | Barcelona |
| Edouard Mendy 🇸🇳 | Al-Ahli |
| Emiliano Martinez 🇦🇷 | Chelsea |
| David Raya 🇪🇸 | Arsenal |
| Matvey Safonov 🇷🇺 | PSG |
| Unai Simon 🇪🇸 | Athletic Club |
| Vozinha 🇨🇻 | Colo-Colo |
2025 winner: Gianluigi Donnarumma
Women’s nominees
| Player | Club |
|---|---|
| Ann-Katrin Berger 🇩🇪 | Gotham FC |
| Cata Coll 🇪🇸 | Barcelona |
| Hannah Hampton 🏴 | Chelsea |
| Lorena 🇧🇷 | Kansas City Current |
| Ayaka Yamashita 🇯🇵 | Manchester City |
2025 winner: Hannah Hampton
Coach of the Year
Men’s nominees
| Coach | Team |
|---|---|
| Mikel Arteta | Arsenal |
| Luis de la Fuente | Spain |
| Unai Emery | Aston Villa |
| Vincent Kompany | Bayern Munich |
| Luis Enrique | PSG |
2025 winner: Luis Enrique
Women’s nominees
This category recognizes the best coaches in the women’s game, rather than just the best female tacticians. Elena Sadiku is the lone female coach among the five contenders.
| Coach | Team(s) |
|---|---|
| Jonatan Giraldez | OL Lyonnes |
| Andree Jeglertz | Manchester City |
| Nils Nielsen | Japan |
| Pere Romeu | Barcelona |
| Elena Sadiku | Celtic & BK Hacken |
2025 winner: Sarina Wiegman
Club of the Year
Men’s clubs
- Arsenal
- Bayern Munich
- Bodo/Glimt
- Flamengo
- Paris Saint-Germain
Women’s clubs
- Barcelona
- Bayern Munich
- Club America
- Manchester City
- OL Lyonnes
Last year’s winners in this category were PSG (men) and Arsenal (women).