Bayern Munich striker Harry Kane's victory margin over Kylian Mbappé in the 2026 Ballon d'Or voting was exceptionally narrow, surpassing even the 41-point differential that separated Rodri and Vinícius Júnior in 2024.
Vincent Garcia, the editor of France Football who oversees the prestigious award, disclosed this information following the presentation of the honor to the English forward at a ceremony held in London on Monday.
During an interview with L'Équipe after Monday evening's event at the London Palladium, Garcia emphasized that the competition between the leading two contenders was determined by an extraordinarily minimal point differential.
France Football will unveil the comprehensive voting results on Saturday.
Garcia said, “The points gap between Kane and Mbappé was smaller than the gap between Rodri and Vinícius Júnior in 2024, which was 41 points, and that was already a very narrow margin at the time.
“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.”
The 33-year-old Kane secured the accolade for the first time following an impressive tally of 73 goals across 65 appearances for Bayern Munich and the England national team.
Bayern Munich captured both the Bundesliga championship and the DFB-Pokal trophy during the preceding season.
Kane additionally contributed six goals during the 2026 World Cup tournament, where England achieved a third-place finish. He represents the first English player to claim the Ballon d'Or award since Michael Owen's achievement in 2001.
Mbappé secured the runner-up position, representing his most successful finish in this competition, with Lamine Yamal placing third.
The Real Madrid forward led the scoring rankings in La Liga with 25 goals, the UEFA Champions League with 15 goals and the World Cup with 10 goals.
Ballon d'Or 2026: Organisers reveal narrow vote margin Kane had over Mbappé