{"id":10762,"date":"2026-10-22T21:37:58","date_gmt":"2026-10-22T21:37:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/?p=10762"},"modified":"2026-10-22T21:37:58","modified_gmt":"2026-10-22T21:37:58","slug":"ballon-dor-2026-can-bayerns-harry-kane-end-englands-25-years-of-hurt-football","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/?p=10762","title":{"rendered":"Ballon d\u2019Or 2026: Can Bayern\u2019s Harry Kane end England\u2019s 25 years of hurt? | Football"},"content":{"rendered":"
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When the 2026 Ballon d\u2019Or<\/a> ceremony gets under way at the London Palladium this Monday, much of England will hope it serves as a good omen.<\/p>\n

After all, the English haven\u2019t seen one of their own lift the golden ball \u2013 football\u2019s most prestigious individual award\u00a0\u2013 in 25 years.<\/p>\n

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Recommended Stories <\/h2>\n

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Michael Owen was the embodiment of English pride when he won the accolade in 2001. Now, it is Harry Kane who could bring his nation an honour every footballer dreams of.<\/p>\n

So, what are Kane\u2019s odds of winning the Ballon d\u2019Or? Al Jazeera takes a look:<\/p>\n

The best season of Kane\u2019s career bodes well for Ballon d\u2019Or<\/h2>\n

Remember the time when Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo scored 50-plus goals for fun? When a football forward\u2019s goal tally looked more like a batsman\u2019s cricket score?<\/p>\n

Kane\u2019s 2025-26 goal-scoring exploit is the closest we have experienced to that in recent years.<\/p>\n

The England captain\u2019s 73-goal performance last season<\/a> was the finest display the world has seen since Argentinian legend Messi\u2019s 82-goal tally in 2011-12.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve never liked to talk about myself too much,\u201d Kane said in an interview last month.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe only thing I would say is that last season was incredible, on a personal level and as a team.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was, by far, the best season of my life.\u201d<\/p>\n

Age is no problem for England and Bayern Munich\u2019s Kane<\/h2>\n

He scored an incredible 36 goals last season, making Kane the Bundesliga\u2019s top scorer for the third year running and earning him a second European Golden Shoe, while finishing nine goals clear of Manchester City\u2019s Erling Haaland in the continental race.<\/p>\n

The Bayern Munich forward\u2019s statistics look even more impressive given he is seemingly peaking at 33, an age when most forwards are far beyond their prime.<\/p>\n

Kane is bidding to join the ranks of Messi, Luka Modric and Karim Benzema, some of the recipients of the last 10 editions who won the Ballon d\u2019Or in their 30s.<\/p>\n

Standing in his way, however, are two very talented juniors \u2013 Spain\u2019s superstar-in-the-making, Lamine Yamal, who won the 2026 FIFA World Cup<\/a> shortly after his 19th birthday, and France\u2019s 2018 world champion, Kylian Mbappe, who is 27.<\/p>\n

When Kane made his Premier League debut for Tottenham Hotspur in 2014, Yamal was still in primary school, and Mbappe was in high school.<\/p>\n

\"Bayern
Bayern Munich\u2019s Harry Kane lifts the trophy as he celebrates with teammates after winning the Bundesliga [File: Angelika Warmuth\/Reuters]<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Could Champions League and World Cup woes hurt Kane\u2019s bid?<\/h2>\n

Since Kane moved from London to Munich, the forward has taken German club football by storm, and 2025-26 was no different. He finished the campaign with three trophies: the Bundesliga title, DFB-Pokal (the German Cup) and Franz Beckenbauer Supercup (the German Supercup).<\/p>\n

But his failure to make an impact in the Champions League semifinal cost Bayern Europe\u2019s most coveted club trophy, and the same was the case at the recent World Cup, where he finished third with England<\/a>.<\/p>\n

While World Cup success is not a strict requirement to win the Ballon d\u2019Or, having a world title on your CV definitely helps. Furthermore, being pitted against 2026 World Cup winners Yamal and Rodri \u2013 also the 2024 Ballon d\u2019Or recipient \u2013 could hurt Kane\u2019s odds.<\/p>\n

Recent history suggests that winning a title in one of the major tournaments has become almost a prerequisite.<\/p>\n

Only four of the previous 19 Ballon d\u2019Or winners failed to lift either the Champions League, World Cup, European Championship or Copa America during the year they won the honour.<\/p>\n

Those exceptions include record eight-time Ballon d\u2019Or recipient Messi and five-time winner Ronaldo.<\/p>\n

\"England's
England\u2019s Harry Kane settled for bronze at the 2026 World Cup [File: Carlos Barria\/Reuters]<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Kane is the bookmakers\u2019 favourite to win the Ballon d\u2019Or<\/h2>\n

Only time will tell whether falling short in major competitions\u2019 crucial knockout rounds will decide Kane\u2019s fate, but for now, he is the bookmakers\u2019 leading candidate for the trophy.<\/p>\n

As of Tuesday, Kane holds about 65-70 percent market share to become the successor to Ousmane Dembele, the 2025 Ballon d\u2019Or winner.<\/p>\n

Unlike other Ballon d\u2019Or contenders, especially the outspoken Yamal and Mbappe, who are campaigning hard for the award, Kane has been relatively quiet.<\/p>\n

Bayern are speaking up for their leader, having put together a video in which teammates said Kane should win.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe deserves to win it, 100 percent, without a doubt,\u201d said Colombian Luis Diaz, who is also on the shortlist.<\/p>\n

If Kane wins the award, he would become only the fifth English player to do so after Stanley Matthews, Bobby Charlton, Kevin Keegan and Michael Owen.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n

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When the 2026 Ballon d\u2019Or ceremony gets under way at the London Palladium this Monday, much of England will hope it serves as a good omen. After all, the English haven\u2019t seen one of their own lift the golden ball \u2013 football\u2019s most prestigious individual award\u00a0\u2013 in 25 years. Recommended Stories list of 4 itemsend…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":10763,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"rop_custom_images_group":[],"rop_custom_messages_group":[],"rop_publish_now":"initial","rop_publish_now_accounts":{"facebook_2277560469115098_106292521332774":"","twitter_aToxNzczMzI3Njk4OTg4ODUxMjAxOw==_1773327698988851200":""},"rop_publish_now_history":[],"rop_publish_now_status":"pending","_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_templately_pack_id":"","_templately_imported_at":"","_templately_source":"","_templately_import_session_id":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[11],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-10762","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-international-news"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t