Harry Kane's 73-goal 2025-26 campaign for Bayern Munich and England has earned him the 2026 Ballon d'Or. In the modern era, only Lionel Messi has scored more in a single season, with 82 in 2011-12. The 33-year-old striker beat Kylian Mbappe and Lamine Yamal to the award at the ceremony in London, becoming the first British player since Michael Owen in 2001 to be crowned the world's best. Amid the celebrations, footage from 2017 has gone viral all over again, showing a 24-year-old Kane, then still at Tottenham Hotspur, being greeted by the legendary Diego Maradona.
The advice worked. The Argentine genius shared a finishing tip with the young striker: "Don't always go near post with your shots. Go across goal sometimes. You know why? Goalkeepers watch you on TV all the time. So next time... across!" "Wow. I'm speechless. Lucky I have this list here," Kane said as he collected the trophy. "Thank you to France Football, the Ballon d'Or for putting on this amazing event. Being in London is extra special, it was like a good omen for me tonight." Maradona himself never won the Ballon d'Or: between 1956 and 1994, the award was open only to European players.
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