Who Will Win The 2026 Ballon D'Or?
In what is global football's night of nights - Paris Saint-Germain superstar Ousmane Dembele was crowned the Ballon d'Or winner.
In doing so, Dembele ended up being just the second PSG gamer and the 6th Frenchman to win the prestigious specific award.
He declared the reward ahead of Barcelona's Lamine Yamal and fellow PSG teammate Vitinha - who completed second and 3rd respectively.
Dembele played a huge function in PSG's success last season - with 36 objectives and 15 helps across all competitors en route a treble, consisting of a Ligue 1 title and the Coupe de France.
However - it was their Champions League victory in May that showed the most substantial, as it marked the very first time PSG have won the European prize.
And they did so in style - with Dembele and Co knocking Inter Milan 5-0 in the final at Munich's Allianz Arena.
With the 2025 Ballon d'Or event now done and cleaned - attention turns to who will be crowned the winner in 2026.
Therefore, let's take an appearance at who are the early favourites to claim the award next year according to Sky Bet.
Who are the favourites to declare the 2026 Ballon d'Or award? Sky Bet odds exposed
Lamine Yamal
Arguably one of the very best teenage footballers in history - Barcelona superstar Yamal has opened as the best-backed with Sky Bet at 5/2 to win the 2026 Ballon d'Or.
Yamal had an exceptional 2024-25 season en route to runner-up in the Ballon d'Or - with the 18-year-old netting 18 goals and signing up 25 assists across all competitions.
His contribution was essential in helping Barcelona declare a domestic treble - as Hansi Flick's side claimed their 28nd league title, 32nd Copa del Rey and the Spanish Super Cup.
Can Yamal construct on his individual and team success and become the youngest gamer in history to win the Ballon d'Or? He is more than capable of doing so.
Yamal has started his 2025-26 season strong, with the winger taping 5 goal contributions in three league video games to date.
Kylian Mbappe
Although previous star Kylian Mbappe had an excellent first campaign for Real Madrid statistically - of which consisted of 44 goals and five helps - it didn't lead to silverware.
Real Madrid failed to choose up a significant prize in 2024-25 - with Los Blancos ending up second in the league and bailing out in the quarter-finals of the Champions League.
Additionally, they went down 5-2 and 3-2 at the hands of El Classico equals Barcelona in the Spanish Super Cup and Copa del Rey finals respectively.
However, must Mbappe have a comparable output this season and Real Madrid are able to get multiple prizes - do not be amazed if the 26-year-old is a strong contender for next year's Ballon d'Or award.
He has began his 2025-26 campaign exceptionally well - with the winger netting 7 goals in 6 league video games so far this season.
With the above in mind, for those expecting Mbappe to declare his maiden Ballon d'Or in 2026 - he is a 5/1 second-favourite according to Sky Bet.
Ousmane Dembele
The abovementioned Dembele has opened as a third-favourite to declare back-to-back Ballon d'Or awards - with the Frenchman priced at 13/2 chances.
If he were to do so, he would end up being the eighth player in history to win the award in successive seasons.
Dembele has had three objective contributions in as many video games in the French top-flight this season.
Vinicius Jr, Mohamed Salah, Harry Kane & Erling Haaland
Real Madrid's Vinicius Jr., Liverpool's Mohamed Salah, Bayern Munich's Harry Kane, and Manchester City's Erling Haaland round out the five favourites in the market.
Vinicius is a sole fourth-favourite at 8/1, while Salah, Kane and Haaland are joint fifth-favourites at 11/1.
Vinicius has three objectives and 3 helps in six league games in 2025-26, while Salah has actually had four goal contributions in the English top-flight to date this season.
Additionally, Haaland currently leads the Premier League's goalscoring tally with 6, while Kane has an impressive 13 objectives and three helps in simply seven games for Bayern across all competitions.
Sky Bet favourites to win the 2026 Ballon d'Or:
Lamine Yamal 5/2
Kylian Mbappe 5/1
Ousmane Dembele 13/2
Vinicius Jr. 8/1
Mohamed Salah 11/1
Harry Kane 11/1
Erling Haaland 11/1