30 nominees revealed for the 2026 Ballon d'Or award
Organizers have announced 30 candidates for this year's Ballon d'Or, including six Spanish World Cup winners and ten players from Champions League winners PSG. The ceremony will take place on 26 October in London.
The list of 30 footballers competing for this year's Ballon d'Or, football's most prestigious individual award, has been announced. The nominees include six Spanish players whose national team won the World Cup this summer, along with ten players from Paris Saint-Germain, which has won the UEFA Champions League for two consecutive years.
Lionel Messi holds the record for most Ballon d'Or wins with eight, while Cristiano Ronaldo has received the most nominations — 18 — winning the award five times. Messi's last win came in 2023, Ronaldo's in 2017. Last year's winner was Ousmane Dembélé, following PSG's Champions League triumph; he is nominated again this year alongside teammates Kylian Mbappé, Michael Olise, William Saliba and Dayot Upamecano.
Spain's nominees include defenders Marc Cucurella and Pau Cubarsí, midfielders Rodri and Fabián Ruiz, and forwards Lamine Yamal and Ferran Torres. Yamal finished second last year, while Rodri won the award in 2024, when he was also named the World Cup's best player. Messi, who recently announced his retirement from Argentina's national team, is nominated for the first time since 2023.
Club and league breakdown
PSG leads all clubs with ten nominees, while Spain's La Liga has seven nominated players and England's Premier League has four.
For the best coach award, nominees include Luis Enrique, Vincent Kompany, Mikel Arteta, Luis de la Fuente and Unai Emery. The best club award nominees are PSG, Bayern Munich, Arsenal, Bodø/Glimt and Flamengo.
The award ceremony will be held on 26 October in London. The eligibility period covers 3 August 2025 to 19 July 2026, the date the World Cup concluded.
