Mikel Arteta backs Arsenal to improve further after ‘exceptional performance’ against Chelsea
Arsenal Football Newsletter
Arsenal have been nominated for Men’s Club of the Year at the 2026 Ballon d’Or awards, while Mikel Arteta is up for Coach of the Year.
The Gunners made the five-strong shortlist announced on Tuesday after a stunning 2025/26 season in which they won their first Premier League title for 22 years.
Arsenal also reached only their second Champions League final and first for two decades, pushing dominant holders Paris Saint-Germain all the way in a 1-1 draw after extra time before losing 4-3 on penalties.
Mikel Arteta’s side also reached the final of the Carabao Cup, losing to title rivals Manchester City at Wembley, and were quarter-finalists in the FA Cup, where they were stunned by Championship outfit Southampton.
Arsenal’s superb campaign has now been further recognised with a nomination for men’s club of the year at the 2026 Ballon d’Or awards.
They will compete against PSG, who won a total of six trophies in the calendar year of 2025 under head coach Luis Enrique before claiming a fifth consecutive Ligue 1 crown and celebrating a second successive Champions League triumph to add to the Trophee des Champions, UEFA Super Cup and FIFA Intercontinental Cup.
Also nominated are Bayern Munich, winners of a domestic treble in Germany under Vincent Kompany as they won a record-breaking 35th Bundesliga title at a canter and brushed aside Stuttgart in the DFB Pokal final as well as edging past Borussia Dortmund in the Franz Beckenbauer Supercup and reaching the Champions League semi-finals, where they lost a thrilling tie to PSG.
Norwegian side Bodo/Glimt have also made the shortlist, following up their 2024 Eliteserien success with a memorable Champions League campaign in which they qualified for the league phase for the first time and beat both Manchester City and Atletico Madrid, before ousting Inter Milan in the knockout phase play-offs.
They also defeated Brann on penalties following a pulsating 3-3 draw in the 2025/26 Norwegian Cup final.
Flamengo have also been nominated after a remarkable 2025 in which they won both the Brazilian Serie A title and also Rio de Janeiro’s Campeonato Carioca, plus beating rivals Palmeiras to claim a fourth Copa Libertadores crown and defeating Botafogo in the Supercopa do Brasil.
They also made it to the final of the FIFA Intercontinental Cup, losing to PSG on penalties in Qatar in December.
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Arsenal’s success has also seen Arteta nominated for Men’s Coach of the Year, alongside Enrique and Kompany. That trio go up against Spain’s World Cup-winning boss Luis de la Fuente and Unai Emery, who won the Europa League with Aston Villa and led them to fourth place in the Premier League.
The 2026 Ballon d’Or awards will be held in London on October 26, with the rest of the nominees - including for the prestigious main individual honour - to be announced throughout Tuesday.
England captain Harry Kane is the current favourite to win the Ballon d’Or, ahead of the likes of Lamine Yamal and Kylian Mbappe. Declan Rice should lead the charge for Arsenal.