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Lamine Yamal refuses to campaign for 2026 Ballon d’Or

9/9/2026

11 2 Full Breakdown

Summary

Yamal Rejects Ballon Campaign

Lamine Yamal said he will not campaign for the 2026 Ballon d’Or.
He placed second in last year’s Ballon d’Or voting behind Ousmane Dembele.
Yamal finished the season with 24 goals and 18 assists.
He told reporters he will not beg for votes, leaving the decision to journalists.
As Barcelona captain, Yamal says winning the Champions League is his biggest motivation.

Summary

London Hosts Ballon

London hosts the 2026 Ballon d’Or ceremony on October 26, first time since 2019 it leaves Paris.
The venue honors Stanley Matthews, the inaugural 1956 Ballon d’Or winner.
Journalists from the top 100 FIFA-ranked nations will rank ten players, awarding 15 to 1 points.
Paris Saint-Germain has ten nominees; Bayern Munich and Arsenal each have five.
Alessia Russo and Alex Greenwood are the only Lionesses among the 30 women’s nominees.

Summary

Kane Leads Ballon

Harry Kane leads the Ballon d’Or race as the odds-on favourite for the October 26 award.
He scored 73 goals last season, second only to Messi’s 82 and ahead of Ronaldo’s 69.
Kane became the fastest player to reach 100 top-five-league goals in 104 games.
Former England stars Rio Ferdinand and Michael Owen publicly backed his Ballon d’Or candidacy.

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Yamal Rejects Ballon Campaign

Lamine Yamal said he will not campaign for the 2026 Ballon d’Or.
He placed second in last year’s Ballon d’Or voting behind Ousmane Dembele.
Yamal finished the season with 24 goals and 18 assists.
He told reporters he will not beg for votes, leaving the decision to journalists.
As Barcelona captain, Yamal says winning the Champions League is his biggest motivation.

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