Ballon d'Or 2026 Power Rankings: Harry Kane's goals keep him on top - but Champions League exit opens the door for Ousmane Dembele, Declan Rice and others

In 2025-26: 21 goals, 10 assists.

It's been an up-and-down season for Julian Alvarez, who made a fast start for Atletico Madrid, including scoring a brace to help take down Real Madrid in the derby in September. He has, however, scored just twice in La Liga since that game, meaning another tilt at the Ballon d'Or seemed beyond him.

That all changed thanks in large part to his performances in the Champions League knockouts. Alvarez netted six goals in eight games as Atleti reached the semi-finals, including a stunning free-kick against Barcelona at Camp Nou that reminded the world of his ability. Missing out on a place in the final, as well as defeat in the Copa del Rey final, has now dealt a hammer blow to Alvarez's hopes of challenging for the Ballon d'Or, even if he will again lead the line for Argentina at the World Cup this summer.

In 2025-26: Four goals, 11 assists. Won Supercopa de Espana.

Pedri remains one of the most masterful midfielders in the game despite having only just turned 23, with Barcelona only able to truly tick when their maestro in the middle of the park is available. That has not always been the case this season, with injury issues again beginning to plague Pedri. But when he has been fit, there have been few better players in La Liga.

Hansi Flick's side are currently well on track to defend their domestic crown, but their Champions League hopes ended after they crashed out at the quarter-final stage to Atletico Madrid. Pedri will still be a key member of Spain's squad as they go in search of World Cup glory, but any hope he had of battling for the Ballon d'Or has all-but disappeared.

In 2025-26: 24 goals, seven assists. Won Serie A.

Though they were embarrassingly dumped out of the Champions League by Bodo/Glimt, Inter are still on for another strong season, with the Nerazzuri having wrapped up the Serie A title ahead of their appearance in the Coppa Italia final. As in previous years, Lautaro Martinez has been the driving force behind that success.

Well clear as the top scorer in the Italian top-flight, Lautaro will also again be part of Argentina's squad for their World Cup defence this summer. Having got the major tournament monkey off his back by starring at the 2024 Copa America, perhaps this will be the 28-year-old's time to shine on the global stage.

In 2025-26: 13 goals, nine assists.

Due to both form and fitness, this has not been a vintage season for Bukayo Saka. However, there is now a real chance that it ends in the most memorable fashion for the Arsenal winger with the Gunners four games away from completing a Premier League-Champions League double.

Saka's return to the fold sparked Arsenal into producing their best performance for weeks against Fulham as they wrestled back control of the title race before the England international then scored the goal that booked the north London outfit's place European football's biggest game on May 30 in Budapest. Throw in that Saka will surely be a key starter for the Three Lions at the World Cup this summer, and his Ballon d'Or case might only just be getting started.

In 2025-26: 22 goals, 14 assists.

Vinicius Jr endured a miserable 2025 when it came to his performances for Real Madrid, managing just eight goals in La Liga over the course of the calendar year as his Ballon d'Or revenge tour went awry. However, as the old adage goes, form is temporary but class is permanent, and Vini showed that he can still prove to be decisive during a hot streak to kick-off 2026 that included him scoring four goals in six Champions League knockout games.

The former Flamengo talent's return to his best level doesn't look like it will be enough to help bring silverware to the Bernabeu, while his abysmal record with Brazil desperately needs to improve by the time the World Cup gets going. As such, a Ballon d'Or nomination is about as much as he can hope for now.

In 2025-26: 19 goals, eight assists. Won Supercopa de Espana.

For some, Raphinha finishing fifth in the 2025 Ballon d'Or voting was a disgrace given the quite ridiculous attacking numbers he posted for Barcelona. They had a point, too, and it seemed that the Brazilian was keen to get himself back among the contenders after shaking off a nagging hamstring problem that stalled his progress through the opening months of the campaign.

He produced match-winning performances against Real Madrid in the final of the Supercopa de Espana and against Newcastle in the Champions League, only to suffer another injury that proved costly in terms of Barca's European hopes. He will, however, be one of the leaders for Brazil at the World Cup, with the Selecao having shown improvements under Carlo Ancelotti as the tournament nears.

In 2025-26: 11 goals, 23 assists.

With the Premier League single-season assist record well within his sights, leading to increased calls for him to be named the English top-flight's Player of the Year, Bruno Fernandes is yet again proving to be the man who makes Manchester United tick. And if he can maintain this form through to the end of the campaign and enjoy a strong World Cup for Portugal, a Ballon d'Or nomination should be his.

Winning the Golden Ball would be another thing altogether, though. With United not in Europe and without a trophy to show for their efforts, Fernandes would had to have enjoyed a truly remarkable campaign to get himself into the running among the main contenders. As good as he's been, he hasn't hit that level.

In 2025-26: 32 goals, six assists.

Only one man, Sir Stanley Matthews, has ever won the Ballon d'Or aged 40 or above. Cristiano Ronaldo joining that exclusive club may well seem farfetched to those whose focus remains on the European game. However, the five-time Golden Ball winner continues to bang in the goals in Saudi Arabia, and he may well finally break his trophy duck in the Middle East this season as, after a mid-season blip, Al-Nassr are back on top of the Pro League table and into the final of AFC's Champions League Two (Asia's version of the Europa League).

Ronaldo is averaging almost a goal a game for the league leaders this term, and with FIFA having given him a reprieve so that he can play in the World Cup from the very start, he will again be leading the line for a Portugal team that will fancy their chances after winning the UEFA Nations League last year. Should Ronaldo taste success at club and international level over the next few months, he might not be able to be denied another Ballon d'Or...

In 2025-26: 32 goals, 20 assists. Won MLS Cup.

He couldn't, could he?! The days of Lionel Messi even being nominated for the Ballon d'Or were thought to be behind us, but after guiding Inter Miami to their first-ever MLS Cup and with Argentina among the favourites to win the World Cup, there is a real chance that the eight-time winner finds himself back in the running for the Golden Ball come the summer.

Messi proved to be a class apart on his way to winning a second-straight MLS MVP award as he provided six goals and seven assists in Miami's six play-off matches alone, and certainly that success at club level would be taken into account if he can help Argentina defend their global crown in North America in 2026. For all the talent around him, Messi remains at the heart of the Albiceleste's line-up, and thus any triumph in the country he now calls home will likely be attributed largely to him once more.

In 2025-26: Four goals, five assists, 27 clean sheets.

Perhaps no player encapsulates modern-day Arsenal more than Gabriel Magalhaes, with the Brazil international having emerged as one of the most dangerous set-piece weapons within the Premier League, while his physical style of defending has rarely been as in vogue within the past couple of decades as it is right now.

Though William Saliba remains as classy as ever, Gabriel should now be considered the more important of Arsenal's centre-back duo, and if he can keep popping up with important goals during the run-in, and perhaps even in the Champions League final, all while keeping them out at the other end, then a strong World Cup with the Selecao should be enough to rubber-stamp himself a place among the Ballon d'Or nominees.

In 2025-26: 28 goals, 23 assists. Won Bundesliga & DFL-Supercup.

Liverpool fans might be forgiven for wondering whether their season might have been far more successful had Luis Diaz not been sold last summer. The versatile forward played an important role in the Reds' title triumph of 2024-25, but his desire for a new challenge led to them accepting a €75m (£65.5m/$88m) bid from Bayern Munich for the Colombia international.

Diaz hasn't looked back since, having struck up a fine understanding with Harry Kane and the rest of his Bayern team-mates. Some of his strikes in the Bundesliga have been stunning, while his thrilling performances in the Champions League will definitely have caught the Ballon d'Or voters' eyes, even if Bayern have ultimately come up short in Europe again. When you factor in that Diaz will also be playing at his first World Cup this summer for a Colombia team who are being tipped as dark horses, he has all the makings of a Golden Ball dark horse.

In 2025-26: Seven goals, 10 assists. Won Trophee des Champions, UEFA Super Cup & FIFA Intercontinental Cup.

Vitinha has come a long way from his underwhelming loan spell at Wolves five years ago to finishing on the Ballon d'Or podium in 2025, and the PSG dictator-in-chief is now regarded by many as the best midfielder on the planet. Certainly, he has played in such a fashion for much of the season, and has even added more goals and assists to his game as Luis Enrique's side have again made their way to the Champions League final.

Vitinha will also form part of a Portugal squad this summer that, after winning the 2025 Nations League, has a genuine belief that they can triumph at the World Cup. Should they do so, then their man in the middle will likely have played a massive part.

In 2025-26: 49 goals, nine assists. Won Carabao Cup.

After an underwhelming season by his own lofty standards, Erling Haaland went into 'Terminator Mode' to begin the current campaign, becoming a one-man battering ram for Manchester City as they aimed to re-establish themselves as challengers for the biggest prizes. A subsequent dry spell to start 2026 threatened to both ruin Haaland's Ballon d'Or chances as well as City's hopes of silverware as they crashed out of the Champions League, but they have since bounced back, winning the Carabao Cup while closing the gap on leaders Arsenal in the Premier League and reaching the final of the FA Cup.

Haaland's candidacy has also been boosted by Norway's first qualification for the World Cup since 1998, which offers their star striker the chance to appear at a major tournament for the first time. The Scandinavians are no more than dark horses to triumph in North America, but Haaland could yet use the global stage to remind voters of what he is capable of.

In 2025-26: 21 goals, 10 assists. Won Trophee des Champions, UEFA Super Cup & FIFA Intercontinental Cup.

If we were to crown the outstanding player of the Champions League knockout stages, then Khvicha Kvaratskhelia would be head and shoulders above pretty much everyone else. The PSG winger became the first player in the competition's history to score or assist in seven successive knockout games, with some stunning strikes included in that number as the defending champions fought their way to another final.

Kvaratskhelia's season-long form has not reached those same heights, however, while Georgia's failure to qualify for the World Cup threatens to put a ceiling on where he can finish in the final Ballon d'Or reckoning. There is still a path to at least the podium for the man they call 'Kvaradona', and he could barely be doing more to ensure he gets there.

In 2025-26: 47 goals, nine assists.

Is this the year Kylian Mbappe finally gets his hands on the Ballon d'Or? Almost from the moment he emerged as a teenager at Monaco, the forward has been anointed a future Golden Ball winner. But having recently celebrated his 27th birthday, Mbappe is still waiting for his opportunity to stand atop the podium in his hometown Paris.

For much of the season, he could have done little more to give himself the best chance possible of ending that wait, as Mbappe carried a struggling Real Madrid, to the point that he picked up a knee injury that he has struggled to fully recover from while Los Blancos' hopes of ending the season with a trophy have gradually drifted away. Mbappe does, however, tend to save his best performances for World Cups, so expect the France captain to go the distance in the Ballon d'Or race even as his club campaign looks likely to end in disappointment.

In 2025-26: 22 goals, 32 assists. Won Bundesliga & DFL-Supercup.

Anyone who predicted that Michael Olise would struggle to make the step up from Crystal Palace to Bayern Munich has been sorely mistaken, with the winger having strung together almost two years of fantastic performances for the Bundesliga champions. Equally capable of scoring as he is creating goals for others, the 24-year-old has grown into one of the most fearsome forward players in the German top-flight while also making his mark on the Champions League, most notably against Real Madrid in the quarter-finals, whom he ran ragged for long periods at the Bernabeu before capping the tie with a goal back in Bavaria.

Olise's club performances have also helped him lock down a starting spot in the France line-up despite intense competition for places. As such, he could be one of the stars of the upcoming World Cup for one of the favourites to lift the trophy.

In 2025-26: Six goals, 13 assists.

Declan Rice announced himself as one of the world's elite midfielders with his performances against Real Madrid in last season's Champions League, and the Arsenal man has gone from strength to strength since. Rice is now one of the Gunners' most important players as they go in search of not just the Premier League title but also a first-ever Champions League triumph, with both trophies now well within their grasp after a monumental week in north London.

Rice's driving runs, defensive contributions and set-piece deliveries mean games rarely pass him by, while he is also a certain starter for a Thomas Tuchel-led England side that looks capable of ending 60 years of hurt by winning the 2026 World Cup.

In 2025-26: 19 goals, 11 assists. Won Trophee des Champions, UEFA Super Cup & FIFA Intercontinental Cup.

Injuries limited the impact Dembele was able to have on the first half of PSG's season, meaning him defending his Ballon d'Or crown looked to be off the table. However, since returning to full fitness, he has forced his way back into the reckoning by rediscovering his best form, most notably with match-winning performances against both Liverpool and Bayern Munich in the Champions League knockouts.

Luis Enrique's side are now one win away from repeating their Champions League triumph from last season, while Dembele is set to be a key member of a France team that is rounding into form ahead of the World Cup. And so, while his personal performances have not consistently hit the heights of 2024-25, Dembele could still force his way into contention by mid-July.

In 2025-26: 25 goals, 20 assists. Won Supercopa de Espana.

The bookmakers' Ballon d'Or favourite heading into the season, Lamine Yamal is well on course to become the first player under the age of 21 to claim the award - and he wouldn't even have to win it in 2026 to do so! The Barcelona teenager's performances in the latter stages of last season's Champions League saw him emerge in the eyes of many as the finest footballer in the world, and his runners-up finish behind Dembele in the voting was testament to that.

There are those who still believe Yamal needs to produce more decisive moments in the biggest games, while there are concerns that the number of matches he has played at such a young age are leading to an increase in injury issues that have ultimately brought a premature end to his campaign. Yamal should be back available for Spain at the World Cup, and if he can light up another major international tournament this summer, he could yet still take home the Ballon d'Or.

In 2025-26: 59 goals, seven assists. Won Bundesliga & DFL-Supercup.

There will always be those who don't fully appreciate Harry Kane, but now that he has got the trophy monkey off his back that so many used to beat him with over the years, the Bayern Munich striker looks like a man on a mission, utterly determined to show that he is also worthy of individual recognition as he continues to score at a remarkable rate.

As well as netting mountains of goals, Kane has showcased his all-round game to devastating effect for the Bundesliga champions, and if he can maintain this form, then further silverware could be coming his way before the summer is over. England fan are praying that their captain doesn't again run out of steam before the World Cup, with Kane key to the Three Lions' hopes of ending their agonising six-decade wait for a major honour at international level.