Mbappé, Vini Jr., Bellingham and Cucurella were part of the list of 30 nominees for the 2026 Ballon d'Or, awarded by France Football, which celebrated its 70th edition. Mbappé came in second, behind Kane. Bellingham ranked 11th, Vini Jr. 17th, and Cucurella 18th. The winner was announced at a gala held at the London Palladium (London) and was chosen by an international jury of specialized journalists, with one representative from each of the top 100 countries in the FIFA ranking.

The nominees were selected based on their achievements during the 2025/26 season. Mbappé was the top scorer in La Liga (25 goals) and the Champions League (15) before participating in the World Cup with France, where he won the Golden Boot after scoring ten goals and became the all-time leading scorer in World Cup history. Vini Jr. and Bellingham also stood out with their national teams in the World Cup, scoring 4 and 7 goals respectively. The Brazilian recorded 22 goals and 9 assists with Real Madrid last season, while the Englishman contributed 8 goals and 2 assists. Meanwhile, Cucurella joined our team from Chelsea after being a key player in Spain's World Cup victory.

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