Kylian Mbappe ramped up his campaign for the Ballon d’Or on Tuesday, telling French media he genuinely believes he can claim football’s most prestigious individual honor this year.
The Real Madrid forward built his case on numbers rather than silverware, pointing to his status as top scorer across the World Cup, the Champions League, and La Liga last season.
He finished as the leading marksman in every major competition he entered, even though his teams fell short in each one France exited the World Cup at the semi-final stage, Real Madrid settled for second in La Liga, and Bayern Munich eliminated them from the Champions League at the quarter-final stage.
Speaking to RFI radio, Mbappe argued that the award ultimately rewards the individual rather than any team success, insisting voters recognize the player, not a squad selected from an envelope.
He suggested that eye-catching individual performances carry more weight with voters than collective silverware, and expressed genuine optimism about his chances given the season he produced.
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His statistical case is substantial. Mbappe scored 25 goals in La Liga last season, added 15 more in the Champions League, and found the net 10 times at the World Cup. That World Cup haul pushed his career tournament tally to 22 goals, making him the competition’s all-time leading scorer.
Still, Mbappe faces a crowded field of rivals who paired individual brilliance with major trophies in 2026. Barcelona duo Lamine Yamal and Ferran Torres both lifted the La Liga title and won the World Cup, giving them a strong claim built on team success as well as personal form.
Paris Saint-Germain’s Ousmane Dembele and Khvicha Kvaratskhelia captured the Champions League together with a Ligue 1 title, while Bayern Munich’s Harry Kane added a Bundesliga crown to his individual output.
