The dust has hardly had a chance to settle on Ousmane Dembele's 2025 Ballon d'Or win, but football moves faster than the speed of light, and so attention has already turned to who could win next year's Golden Ball, handed to the best player in the world for the 2025/26 season.



Will Lionel Messi or Cristiano Ronaldo make a shock return to football’s pedestal? In a World Cup year, almost anything is possible, but it’s safer to place your bets on star players representing one of the favourites for next year’s showpiece prize.

Meanwhile, clubs such as Real Madrid, Liverpool, and Paris Saint-Germain - each of whom have started the campaign in scintillating form - will have players in contention to hoist the Ballon d’Or, with league and Champions League winners traditionally holding a strong influence in the ceremony.

In the past, the prestigious individual accolade was based on the performance of footballers across a calendar year. However, this time around - for the fourth time in the award's history - the votes are based on the results of the season. With that in mind, we've listed – and ranked – the 20 players who are best placed to win the 2026 Ballon d'Or based on their respective team's chances of success as well as their current form.