Yamal says he deserves the Ballon d'Or as Mbappé and Kane make their cases

Pinned summary · as of 04:53

Barcelona forward Lamine Yamal has told Movistar he believes he has earned this year's Ballon d'Or, naming Real Madrid's Kylian Mbappé as his main rival. Bayern Munich's Harry Kane is also part of the debate, and a GiveMeSport ranking has Yamal in front. Pulse Ghana and MyJoyOnline say voting has now closed.

What we know

• Lamine Yamal, Kylian Mbappé and Harry Kane are all figures in the discussion over the 2026 Ballon d'Or, according to reports by The Vaultz News and Pulse Ghana.
• Mbappé found the net ten times at the 2026 World Cup.
• Kane collected the European Golden Shoe as the top scorer in Europe.

What's disputed / unconfirmed

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  The Vaultz News quoted Yamal as saying “this year, I believe I deserve it”, and reported that he sees his trophy haul as an advantage over Mbappé while arguing that team trophies alone should not settle the award. He also said he would love to play Real Madrid in El Clásico. These remarks appear in one report only.
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  The Vaultz News said the first El Clásico of the season is on 25 October and that Barcelona have won recent meetings, including two Spanish Super Cup finals. It described Yamal as 19, runner-up in last year's voting to Ousmane Dembélé, with 16 La Liga goals last term and a best-player prize from the league. It gave Mbappé the Pichichi, the Champions League scoring title and the World Cup Golden Boot, and Kane 73 goals for club and country. No second report backs these details.
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  Reports disagree on Yamal's start to the new season. The Vaultz News counted eight goals and four assists in seven games, whereas Pulse Ghana, drawing on GiveMeSport, put it at eight goals and six assists in eight games. They also differ on Kane, for whom Pulse Ghana listed 61 goals in 51 Bayern Munich games plus six at the World Cup.
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  GiveMeSport's latest Power Rankings put Yamal first, followed by Kane, Rodri, Mbappé and Lionel Messi, weighing goals, assists, trophies, big moments and current form. Pulse Ghana and MyJoyOnline relayed the ranking, which is one publication's opinion and not a result.
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  Pulse Ghana and MyJoyOnline both said the balloting for this year's award is over, with MyJoyOnline adding that the World Cup has shaped the race. Neither reported an announcement of the winner, and the end of balloting has not been confirmed elsewhere.
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  Pulse Ghana, citing GiveMeSport, gave Yamal 24 goals and 18 assists in 45 games last season and one goal and one assist at the World Cup, said Spain beat Argentina 1-0 in the final, and added that he could be the youngest winner ever. Its figures for Mbappé were 42 goals in 44 Real Madrid games and ten at the World Cup, though its account of the third-place match is inconsistent, giving victory to France in one place and to England 6-4 in another.
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  Pulse Ghana's write-up of GiveMeSport's ranking also credited Kane with the fastest 100 Bundesliga goals, 98 games, and 36 league goals in 2025/26, and said he has scored six times in seven starts to this season. It described Rodri as the World Cup's Golden Ball winner who has since joined Barcelona, and gave Messi 24 goals in 28 games for Inter Miami and eight goals at the World Cup.
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  The same write-up credited Dembélé, the current holder, with 20 goals in 40 games as Paris Saint-Germain kept the Champions League, and Michael Olise with 31 assists in 52 games for Bayern Munich. It also listed Jude Bellingham, Declan Rice and Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, noting that Georgia missed the World Cup. These claims are from one report.

Why it matters for Ghana

Football fans across Ghana follow the Ballon d'Or closely, and arguments over who deserves it run through radio shows, viewing centres and family group chats. This year the debate pits players from La Liga, the Bundesliga and Ligue 1 against each other, and the differing statistics in circulation mean supporters should treat figures with care. No winner has been reported in the material available so far.