Despite toppling records set by Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo, with even the great Pelé now in his sights, Harry Kane warned that it will take more than goals to win next year’s Ballon d’Or.
Kane finished 13th in the 2025 Ballon d’Or voting, finding himself below both fullbacks for Paris Saint-Germain and even his England compatriot Cole Palmer.
The Bundesliga champion enjoyed an even better individual campaign in 2023–24, amassing 44 goals in 45 games for Bayern Munich while leading the Three Lions to the final of Euro 2024. Yet, that year, he still couldn’t climb higher than 10th in the vote for France Football’s prestigious individual award.
Now very much in the second half of his career, Kane is still showing remarkable signs of improvement. Taking on an increasing amount of responsibility in possession for a rampant Bayern Munich side, the 32-year-old has rattled in 23 goals across 17 games, scoring and assisting at a quicker rate than Messi’s record-shattering 2011–12 campaign.
Yet, Kane has come to the conclusion that it will require more than mere goals to earn in the individual accolades his performances have warranted. “I could score 100 goals this season, but if I don’t win the Champions League or the World Cup, you’re probably not going to win the Ballon d’Or,” the England captain sighed to The Guardian.
Harry Kane’s Record in the Ballon d’Or
* The Ballon d’Or was not handed out in 2020.
“It’s the same with [Manchester City’s Erling] Haaland, it’s the same with any player,” Kane added. “You have to be winning those major trophies. We’re in great shape at Bayern Munich so that maybe makes the odds a little bit more in my favour. Same with England.”
It’s intriguing that Kane flagged the case of Haaland independently. The Nordic goal-gobbler rattled in a scarcely conceivable 52 goals in 53 games for Manchester City as Pep Guardiola’s side won the treble of FA Cup, Premier League and Champions League in 2022–23. Yet, Haaland still finished a distant second to Messi in that year’s Ballon d’Or vote after the Argentine ended his long wait to win the World Cup.
Kane will be at the heart of England’s bid to wrestle that title off Messi and Argentina next year. The Three Lions skipper has maintained his staggering scoring form under the watch of his former Bayern Munich manager Thomas Tuchel. Heading into England’s final World Cup qualifier against Albania on Sunday afternoon, Kane boasted 76 goals in 111 caps, one shy of the 77 Pelé amassed in 92 appearances for Brazil.
The European-centric criteria of the Ballon d’Or prevented Pelé from ever winning the coveted award during his playing career, but his stature in the game was so revered that France Football handed him an honorary award in 2014. When the magazine revisited the list of candidates in the years before the prize was open to players of all nationalities, Pelé was retroactively crowned Ballon d’Or on seven occasions. At this rate, Kane would surely settle for just one.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Harry Kane Makes 2026 Ballon d’Or Prediction While Eyeing Up Pele Record.
