Who Will Win The 2026 Ballon D'Or?
In what is international football's night of nights - Paris Saint-Germain super star Ousmane Dembele was crowned the Ballon d'Or winner.
In doing so, Dembele became just the 2nd PSG gamer and the to win the prestigious private award.
He declared the prize ahead of Barcelona's Lamine Yamal and fellow PSG colleague Vitinha - who ended up second and third respectively.
Dembele played a huge function in PSG's success last season - with 36 goals and 15 helps across all competitions en route a treble, consisting of a Ligue 1 title and the Coupe de France.
However - it was their Champions League triumph in May that proved the most significant, as it marked the very first time PSG have actually won the European prize.
And they did so in style - with Dembele and Co thrashing Inter Milan 5-0 in the last at Munich's Allianz Arena.
With the 2025 Ballon d'Or ceremony now done and dusted - attention turns to who will be crowned the winner in 2026.
Therefore, let's take a look at who are the early favourites to declare 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 best teenage footballers in history - Barcelona superstar Yamal has actually opened as the best-backed with Sky Bet at 5/2 to win the 2026 Ballon d'Or.
Yamal had an extraordinary 2024-25 season en route to runner-up in the Ballon d'Or - with the 18-year-old netting 18 objectives and signing up 25 assists throughout all competitions.
His contribution was important in helping Barcelona declare a domestic treble - as Hansi Flick's side declared their 28nd league title, 32nd Copa del Rey and the Spanish Super Cup.
Can Yamal construct on his specific and team success and end up being the youngest player in history to win the Ballon d'Or? He is more than efficient in doing so.
Yamal has began his 2025-26 season strong, with the winger tape-recording five objective contributions in 3 league games to date.
Kylian Mbappe
Although former PSG super star Kylian Mbappe had a great maiden project for Real Madrid statistically - of that included 44 goals and five assists - it didn't lead to flatware.
Real Madrid stopped working to get a major prize in 2024-25 - with Los Blancos finishing second in the league and bailing out in the quarter-finals of the Champions League.
Additionally, they decreased 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, should Mbappe have a comparable output this season and Real Madrid are able to get numerous prizes - don't be surprised if the 26-year-old is a strong competitor for next year's Ballon d'Or award.
He has began his 2025-26 project extremely well - with the winger netting 7 goals in 6 league video games so far this season.
With the above in mind, for those preparing for Mbappe to declare his maiden Ballon d'Or in 2026 - he is a 5/1 second-favourite according to Sky Bet.
Ousmane Dembele
The aforementioned Dembele has actually opened as a third-favourite to claim 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 8th gamer in history to win the award in successive seasons.
Dembele has had 3 objective contributions in as numerous 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 complete the 5 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 3 objectives and 3 assists in six league games in 2025-26, while Salah has actually had 4 objective 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 excellent 13 objectives and three assists 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