Harry Kane won the men’s Ballon d’Or at the ceremony in London.
Harry Kane ends England’s 25-year wait for the men’s award, while Alexia Putellas claims her third women’s title.
Harry Kane won the Ballon d’Or in London on Monday, beating Kylian Mbappe and Lamine Yamal. The Bayern Munich striker became the first English winner since Michael Owen in 2001.
Meanwhile, Alexia Putellas secured the women’s award for a third time after helping Barcelona win last season’s Champions League. She has since joined London City Lionesses.
London hosted the ceremony for the first time, but traffic delayed proceedings by almost an hour. Several leading players arrived late before Kane celebrated the biggest individual honour of his career.
Kane’s goals deliver Ballon d’Or breakthrough
The 33-year-old scored 73 goals in 65 appearances for club and country last season. His contribution helped Bayern secure a German league and cup double.
He also scored six goals during England’s run to third place at the World Cup. Kane said winning in his home city made the achievement particularly special.
Although he holds the scoring records for England and Tottenham, his team honours remain limited to German domestic trophies. He lost the 2019 Champions League final with Spurs and two European Championship finals with England.
However, Kane credited his 2023 move to Bayern with helping him improve further. He said the club, team and teammates had pushed him to a higher level.
Mbappe finished second after topping the scoring charts at the World Cup, Champions League and La Liga. However, those goals did not bring collective success for France or Real Madrid.
Yamal placed third and missed the chance to become the award’s youngest winner. Nevertheless, the 19-year-old Barcelona winger collected the young player prize for a third consecutive year.
Putellas returns to the top as Spain collects honours
Putellas added to her 2021 and 2022 victories after recovering from a serious knee injury four years ago. She succeeded Spain teammate Aitana Bonmati, whose season suffered a major setback through a broken leg.
Reflecting on the honour, Putellas credited Barcelona’s achievements and expressed gratitude for her 14 seasons at the club.
Spain also celebrated Luis de la Fuente’s men’s coach award after he led the country to World Cup success. He beat Paris Saint-Germain’s Luis Enrique and Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta.
Meanwhile, Barcelona’s Pere Romeu won the women’s coaching prize. Spanish goalkeepers Unai Simon and Cata Coll took the men’s and women’s goalkeeper awards respectively.
Paris Saint-Germain claimed the men’s club award after winning a second straight Champions League title. However, the French club missed out on the main individual honours.
