ARLINGTON, TEXAS - JULY 14: Kylian Mbappe #10 of France competes for the ball against Lamine Yamal #19 of Spain during the FIFA World Cup 2026 Semi Final match between France and Spain at Dallas Stadium on July 14, 2026 in Arlington, Texas. (Photo by Lars Baron/Getty Images)
A bizarre scene is playing out behind the scenes ahead of this evening’s announcement of the official winner of the 2026 Ballon d’Or.
This comes after a trio of articles were published on France Football’s website, naming three different winners of the prize.
The Ballon d’Or gala is currently underway in the English capital of London, as fans from across the globe impatiently await the crowning of world football’s very best player for the last 12 months.
Three leading candidates have long emerged for the prize, namely Bayern Munich frontman Harry Kane, Barcelona prodigy Lamine Yamal, and Real Madrid goalscorer Kylian Mbappé.
And as alluded to above, mere hours before the ‘Golden Ball’ winner being unveiled, chaos has erupted.
France Football, the organisers of the annual Ballon d’Or ceremony, have tonight released three articles on their website. In one, Kane is named triumphant, another Lamine, and the last, Mbappé.
The assumption is that all three were prepared in advance, to ensure timely recognition for the ultimate winner of the award. But in a major blunder, the posts have all been published prematurely, culminating in widespread confusion across the world of football.
👀 Triple despiste de France Football con las victorias de Lamine, Mbappé y Kane en el Balón de Orohttps://t.co/llZ8nbyJAt
— Mundo Deportivo (@mundodeportivo) October 26, 2026
Conor Laird – GSFN