Harry Kane's rivals have sparked wild conspiracy theories in the wake of the England captain's historic Ballon d'Or win - with supporters of fellow favourites Lamine Yamal and Kylian Mbappe both hinting that there had been behind-the-scenes machinations to rig the voting.
The Bayern Munich striker - who returned to his club this morning - became the first Englishman to win football's ultimate individual honour in 25 years after Michael Owen claimed the prize in 2001.
All the more special was that the 33-year-old - who bagged a staggering 73 goals during the 2025-26 season - was able to do so in front of a home crowd, with the France Football event relocating from Paris to the capital for the first time since its founding 70 years ago.
But despite Kane's mammoth contributions to international football making him a worthy winner, those who might have backed his closest rivals Yamal and Mbappe were quick to seek alternative explanations to why their favourites had lost out.
Real Madrid legend Guti suggested that the change of venue had played a large part in the timing of Kane's honour.
'It just so happens that, for the 70th anniversary, they move the ceremony to London and someone from London wins it,' the former Los Blancos claimed on Spanish panel show El Chiringuito. 'It's an incredible coincidence that they move it to London and someone from London wins it, isn't it?
Wild conspiracy theories have been swirling in the wake of Harry Kane's Ballon d'Or win
Those who believe that Real Madrid star Kylian Mbappe should have received the top prize have suggested foul play behind the scenes
Lamine Yamal came away the winner of the Young Talent of the Year but might have preferred a more significant honour
'I mean, it's as if everything is…' he deliberately trailed off, before another member of the panel suggested the word 'orchestrated'.
'Completely. Absolutely. That's what I think, and it's what I've thought about this award for a long time,' Guti added, before bafflingly citing Kane's surprise at having been named the best footballer in the world as further evidence in favour of his theory.
'I'm telling you, when I saw the look on his face when they announced Harry Kane, he never in his life thought he was going to win it,' he continued. 'Never. I think he expected both Lamine Yamal and Mbappe to finish ahead of him.
'You only have to look at his face.'
The decision-making behind the legendary French event travelling to London as a one-off was made to pay tribute to the award's first ever winner, Sir Stanley Matthews.
The Stoke City icon's family were present at the event and featured on the red carpet.
But while supporters of Real Madrid were likely to prove partisan following the snubbing of Mbappe, Yamal's uncle entered the fray to defend his nephew, claiming that the teenager should have won the honour and making a dig at Kane in the process.
Speaking to Cadena SER in the immediate aftermath of the announcement, Abdul stressed that 'my nephew was fantastic, he was the best player in the world.'
Real Madrid legend Guti (left) was one to draw a spurious connection between Kane's heritage and the London venue of the event
While Yamal's uncle Abdul fiercely defended his nephew on Cadena SER after he missed out
'Everyone knows it. If you love football, you go to see Lamine, not Harry Kane,' he added. 'Lamine is very young, he's 19, he'll win more, but Harry only has three days of competition left and they give him the Ballon d'Or.
'Lamine has won a World Cup, La Liga, and the Super Cup. He plays very well. He's had an incredible season. He scores goals that no one else scores. Passes, assists, he has it all. He'll win five Ballon d'Or awards.'
Instead, Yamal won the Young Talent of the Year award for a staggering third consecutive year.
When asked cheekily by co-host Thierry Henry if this was the award that he really wanted, Yamal was politely bashful, noting that he believed that the honour belonged to his Barcelona and Spain team-mate Pau Cubarsi.
While Kane's triumph was won on merit rather than skulduggery, France Football editor in chief Vincent Garcia confirmed that the voting had been incredibly tight between the English star and his closest competitor Mbappe.
'This year, there were several serious contenders,' Garcia said. 'The two closest were the top two, Harry Kane and Kylian Mbappe, and the race between them was decided by very little.
'The points gap between Kane and Mbappe was smaller than the gap between Rodri and Vinicius in 2024, which was 41 points - and that was already a very narrow margin at the time.'
Amid speculation Kane focused on celebrating in London with his partner Katie Goodland
Early in the evening Ousmane Dembele and Mbappe were accused of not showing Kane significant respect
The 33-year-old went on to dance the night away at upscale club Cirque Le Soir on Monday
'I was watching the results in real time during the month of the vote. Kylian led the race for a long time, but Harry Kane came back into contention, and in the end, it was decided by a very, very small number of points.'
So hard-fought was the battle between the players that there appeared to be a touch of sour grapes in the immediate aftermath.
Footage from inside the London Palladium showed French superstars Mbappe and last year's winner Ousmane Dembele failing to stand to shake Kane's hand after he had accepted the top prize.
But Kane brushed off any suggestions of tension between rivals as he went on to celebrate his win at nearby nightclub Cirque Le Soir.
Former team-mates and colleagues including Eric Dier, Tim Sherwood, and James Maddison joined the jubilant party at the upscale hangout, where Kane and his wife Katie Goodland were treated to a parade of Champagne bottles and sparklers.
With training on Tuesday in Munich however, Kane went easy on the alcohol in preparation for a return to the pitch with Bayern against Magdeburg on Wednesday evening.