Soccer
German legend gives Harry Kane his vote to win the 2026 Ballon d'Or
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Following the reveal of the nominations for this year's Ballon d'Or, the race is now on to see who is crowned the 2026 winner.
A list of thirty names was announced this week, which included some of the biggest names in Europe right now, each who have enjoyed notable success over the past twelve months.
Of that list, several players currently lead the way to be the man who lifts the Golden Ball on October 26th - a ceremony which you can watch live on DAZN - among them are Kylian Mbappe, Lamine Yamal and former winner Rodri.
However, the favourite right now among most is England skipper Harry Kane. The Bayern Munich striker is aiming to be the first English player to win the award since Michael Owen in 2001, after a season that saw him score 72 goals for club and country.
Kane was again on the scoresheet on Thursday night as Bayern began their Champions League campaign with a 5-0 win over Bode/Glimt, and after the game, the striker was given a glowing endorsement ahead of the Ballon d'Or by German legend Jurgen Klinsmann.
Speaking to ESPN, the former striker, who was a Ballon d'Or runner-up in 1995, had no doubt that Kane deserved the honour when asked who his vote would go to for football's biggest individual prize.
"He would definitely get my vote, there's no doubt about it," Klinsmann said.
"Because of his consistency, he's not only exceptional and he had a fantastic season, fantastic year. Also, even if he didn't win the World Cup, he had a fantastic World Cup. So on all levels, whatever competition he played throughout the last season, he was exceptional, he was top class.
"And this is something that he has already proved for years already, before he moved to Bayern Munich from Spurs. He was always top-notch in the Premier League, he scored his goals, crazy amount of goals.
"And I think he absolutely deserves that award. I think he should have it."
A Kane win would see him become the fifth Englishman to bag the award following Owen in 2001, Kevin Keegan's double in 1978 and 79, Bobby Charlton in 1966 and the first-ever winner of the gong Stanley Matthews.
It would also see a Bayern Munich player receive the honour for the first time since 1981, when Karl-Heinz Rummenigge won the award.
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