Real Madrid star Kylian Mbappé is considered the early favourite to scoop next year’s Ballon d’Or award.
This of course comes in the midst of what has been a remarkable opening to the campaign on the part of the Frenchman.
Mbappé was on target once more on Sunday, as Real Madrid put Barcelona to the sword in the season’s first edition of El Clásico.
This took the former PSG man’s tally to 11 goals in 10 La Liga appearances, and 16 in 13 outings across all competitions.
And such ongoing excellence, it would appear, has not gone at all unrecognised across the continent.
As revealed by statisticians ‘Score90’ on ‘X’, taking into consideration all of ‘current performances, overall quality and potential to demonstrate Ballon d’Or-level impact over the course of the season’, Mbappé sits top of the pile in the race for next year’s Ballon d’Or.
The frontman is followed by Manchester City’s Erling Haaland, Harry Kane of Bayern Munich, Barcelona sensation Lamine Yamal, and Mbappé’s Real Madrid teammate, Vinícius Jr.
Ballon d’Or 2026 Ranking, October – According to Score 90 🏆⭐️
Note: Given the early stage of the season, the rankings consider not only current performances but also the players’ overall quality and potential to demonstrate Ballon d’Or-level impact over the course of the… pic.twitter.com/V1XJa0v4fW
— Score 90 (@Score90_) October 27, 2025
Conor Laird – GSFN