The nominees for the 2026 Ballon d’Or awards have been unveiled, with several of the biggest names in world football shortlisted for the prestigious individual honours.
The nominees were announced by the award organisers via their official X account on Tuesday, September 8, 2026.
The shortlist recognises players, coaches and clubs who made significant contributions at both club and international level during the 2025/26 season.
The winners will be announced at the 2026 Ballon d’Or ceremony scheduled to hold on Monday, October 26, at the London Palladium Theatre in London.
Men’s Ballon d’Or Nominees
The nominees for the men’s award include Lionel Messi, Kylian Mbappé, Lamine Yamal, Jude Bellingham, Ousmane Dembélé, Erling Haaland, Harry Kane, Vinicius Jr., Sadio Mané and Bruno Fernandes.
The full list is:
- Rodrigo Hernández — Manchester City, Barcelona/Spain
- Lionel Messi — Inter Miami/Argentina
- Kylian Mbappé — Real Madrid/France
- Lamine Yamal — FC Barcelona/Spain
- Jude Bellingham — Real Madrid/England
- Pau Cubarsí — FC Barcelona/Spain
- Marc Cucurella — Chelsea, Real Madrid/Spain
- Ousmane Dembélé — Paris Saint-Germain/France
- Luis Díaz — Bayern Munich/Colombia
- Bruno Fernandes — Manchester United/Portugal
- Erling Haaland — Manchester City/Norway
- Gabriel Magalhães — Arsenal/Brazil
- Harry Kane — Bayern Munich/England
- Achraf Hakimi — Paris Saint-Germain/Morocco
- Khvicha Kvaratskhelia — Paris Saint-Germain/Georgia
- Marcos Corrêa — Paris Saint-Germain/Brazil
- Sadio Mané — Al-Nassr/Senegal
- Lautaro Martínez — Inter Milan/Argentina
- Nuno Mendes — Paris Saint-Germain/Portugal
- Michael Olise — Bayern Munich/France
- João Neves — Paris Saint-Germain/Portugal
- Willian Pacho — Paris Saint-Germain/Ecuador
- Julian Quiñones — Al-Qadsiah/Mexico
- Declan Rice — Arsenal/England
- Fabián Ruiz — Paris Saint-Germain/Spain
- Ferran Torres — FC Barcelona, Paris Saint-Germain/Spain
- William Saliba — Arsenal/France
- Dayot Upamecano — Bayern Munich/France
- Vinicius Jr. — Real Madrid/Brazil
- Vítor Ferreira (Vitinha) — Paris Saint-Germain/Portugal
Women’s Ballon d’Or Nominees
The women’s shortlist features leading players including Caroline Graham Hansen, Ewa Pajor, Alessia Russo, Khadija Shaw, Patri Guijarro and Wendie Renard.
The nominees are:
- Selma Bacha — OL Lyonnes/France
- Barbra Banda — Orlando Pride/Zambia
- Klara Bühl — Bayern Munich/Germany
- Esmee Brugts — FC Barcelona Femení/Netherlands
- Mariona Caldentey — Arsenal/Spain
- Scarlett Camberos — Club América/Mexico
- Kerstin Casparij — Manchester City Women/Netherlands
- Temwa Chawinga — Kansas City Current/Malawi
- Cata Coll — FC Barcelona Femení/Spain
- Melchie Dumornay — OL Lyonnes/Haiti
- Caroline Graham Hansen — FC Barcelona Femení/Norway
- Alex Greenwood — Manchester City Women/England
- Pernille Harder — Bayern Munich/Denmark
- Patri Guijarro — FC Barcelona Femení/Spain
- Rose Lavelle — Gotham FC/United States
- Yui Hasegawa — Manchester City Women/Japan
- Mapi León — FC Barcelona Femení, London City Lionesses/Spain
- Lorena — Kansas City Current/Brazil
- Melvine Malard — Manchester United, Chelsea/France
- Manaka Matsukubo — North Carolina Courage, Chelsea/Japan
- Ewa Pajor — FC Barcelona Femení/Poland
- Vivianne Miedema — Manchester City Women/Netherlands
- Claudia Pina — FC Barcelona Femení/Spain
- Alessia Russo — Arsenal/England
- Momoko Tanikawa — Bayern Munich/Japan
- Wendie Renard — OL Lyonnes/France
- Khadija Shaw — Manchester City Women/Jamaica
- Caroline Weir — Real Madrid, OL Lyonnes/Scotland
- Tessa Wullaert — Inter Milan, Como/Belgium
Men’s Coach of the Year
- Mikel Arteta — Arsenal
- Luis de la Fuente — Spain
- Unai Emery — Aston Villa
- Vincent Kompany — Bayern Munich
- Luis Enrique — Paris Saint-Germain
Women’s Coach of the Year
- Jonatan Giráldez — OL Lyonnes
- Andrée Jeglertz — Manchester City Women
- Nils Nielsen — Japan
- Pere Romeu — FC Barcelona Femení
- Elena Sadiku — Celtic FC Women/BK Häcken
Men’s Club of the Year
- Arsenal
- Bayern Munich
- Bodø/Glimt
- Flamengo
- Paris Saint-Germain
Women’s Club of the Year
- FC Barcelona
- Bayern Munich
- Club América
- Manchester City
- OL Lyonnes
Men’s Goalkeeper of the Year
- Yassine Bounou — Al-Hilal/Morocco
- Thibaut Courtois — Real Madrid/Belgium
- Joan García — FC Barcelona/Spain
- Gregor Kobel — Borussia Dortmund/Switzerland
- Emiliano Martínez — Aston Villa, Chelsea/Argentina
- Edouard Mendy — Al-Ahli/Senegal
- David Raya — Arsenal/Spain
- Matvey Safonov — Paris Saint-Germain/Russia
- Unai Simón — Athletic Bilbao/Spain
- Vozinha (Josimar Dias) — GD Chaves, Colo-Colo/Cape Verde
Women’s Goalkeeper of the Year
- Ann-Katrin Berger — Gotham FC/England
- Cata Coll — FC Barcelona Femení/Spain
- Hannah Hampton — Chelsea/England
- Lorena — Kansas City Current/Brazil
- Ayaka Yamashita — Manchester City Women/Japan
Men’s Young Talent of the Year
- Ayyoub Bouaddi — Lille, Manchester City/Morocco
- Kerim Alajbegović — RB Salzburg, Juventus/Bosnia and Herzegovina
- Yan Diomandé — RB Leipzig, Real Madrid/Côte d’Ivoire
- Pau Cubarsí — FC Barcelona/Spain
- Lennart Karl — Bayern Munich/Germany
- Éli Junior Kroupi — AFC Bournemouth/France
- Lamine Yamal — FC Barcelona/Spain
- Ibrahim Maza — Bayer Leverkusen/Algeria
- Johan Manzambi — SC Freiburg, Aston Villa/Switzerland
- Warren Zaïre-Emery — Paris Saint-Germain/France
Women’s Young Talent of the Year
- Veerle Buurman — Chelsea/Netherlands
- Vicky López — FC Barcelona Femení/Spain
- Felicia Schröder — BK Häcken, Real Madrid/Sweden
- Clara Serrajordi — FC Barcelona Femení/Spain
- Lily Yohannes — OL Lyonnes/United States
The 2026 Ballon d’Or ceremony will bring together the leading players, coaches and clubs recognised for their performances during the 2025/26 campaign, with winners to be crowned in London on October 26.
