Kylian Mbappé finished second in the 70th Ballon d’Or rankings, with Bayern Munich and England striker Harry Kane taking home the award hosted in London.
Mbappé was the only Real Madrid player to finish inside the top 10. Jude Bellingham narrowly missed out and finished in 11th, while Vinícius Júnior came 17th, one place ahead of Marc Cucurella. The quartet were Madrid’s only players in the final rankings, leaving Mbappé as the club’s closest challenger to Kane on the night.
Real Madrid made their first appearance at the ceremony since 2023, returning after two editions. Madrid boycotted the event in 2024 after Vinícius Jr. was dramatically overlooked for the trophy, which went to then Manchester City midfielder Rodri. The club stayed away again in 2025 when Ousmane Dembele lifted the coveted prize.
This year, Madrid had a contender near the top of the voting, but Mbappé ultimately settled for second as Kane claimed the individual honour. Barcelona forward Lamine Yamal was ranked third.