Ballon d’Or 2026: Owen Hargreaves names top two favourites to win award
Former Manchester United and Manchester City midfielder, Owen Hargreaves has named his top two favourites to win the 2026 Ballon d’Or.
The winner of this year’s Ballon d’Or will be announced in October in London.
Paris Saint-Germain forward, Ousmane Dembele won the top prestigious individual prize last year.
However, Hargreaves believes Bayern Munich striker, Harry Kane and Barcelona midfielder, Rodri are the top two favourites to win the Ballon d’Or.
“There are a few contenders, but you can’t say which one of them clearly stands out,” Hargreaves was quoted as saying by Bavarian Football Works (via MiaSanMia on X).
“Harry Kane played incredibly well for Bayern and, of course, won the league. His goalscoring record was simply unbelievable. Of course, he also had a very good World Cup, where he scored a lot of goals. England finished third in that tournament — I mean, who else could it be?
“I thought Rodri was outstanding. He won both cup titles with Manchester City (FA Cup and Carabao Cup). He won the World Cup and was probably the best player in the tournament. If I were to vote, it would come down to these two players,” he added.


