27 October 2026 | iGaming Industry News |
The long 25 year wait is over for England as Harry Kane landed the Ballon d’Or in London last night. The current England and Bayern Munich striker was crowned the best men’s player at the ceremony in London, in what was undoubtedly a deserved victory. He also justified the odds, having gone into the night as the 2/5 favourite. This meant that he became the first Englishman to win the prestigious trophy in 25 years, following Michael Owen’s victory back in 2001.
Harry Kane scored a staggering 73 goals across the 2025/26 season and was also named Men’s Striker of the Year at the event. This came during a season in which he won two trophies in Germany, with Bayern Munich also reaching the semi-finals of the Champions League. Kane also led England to a third-place finish at the World Cup, scoring six goals in the process. This meant that he became England’s all-time leading goalscorer at the World Cup.
Kane went into the competition having never previously finished higher than 10th, but was voted the winner ahead of both Kylian Mbappé and Lamine Yamal by the international panel organised by France Football.
Kane was left almost speechless, but the 33 year old England captain went on to thank everyone who had been part of his journey towards becoming the best footballer in the world, marking a remarkable achievement.
Following the award, England manager Thomas Tuchel was quick to pay tribute to the striker, saying: “I ran out of superlatives to describe your performances a long time ago, but I’m delighted to see that you have now been formally recognised by the football world.” He then added: “To become the first Englishman to win this huge honour in 25 years makes it extra special and we are lucky to have you as our leader.”
Kane has now joined a very exclusive list, becoming just the fifth Englishman in history to win the award, following Sir Stanley Matthews, Sir Bobby Charlton, Kevin Keegan and Michael Owen.
Kane currently stands as England’s all-time top scorer with 91 goals and is also the most-capped player with 125 appearances. There is no doubt that all roads now lead to the European Championship on home soil, but can he help lead England to finally bring a trophy home?
