In World Cup years, the unofficial crown of “best player on the planet” usually lands on the head of a global champion. Spain’s triumph in North America has pushed their stars straight into that conversation, and two names sit right at the heart of it: Rodri and Lamine Yamal.
Rodri already has the Ballon d’Or from 2024 on his mantelpiece and, after another commanding year, is back in the running. Alongside him now at Barcelona, the electric Yamal has turned teenage hype into hard evidence, dragging games to his rhythm and forcing his way into the elite debate before he’s even hit his peak.
Harry Kane is there too, as he always seems to be. Sixty-one goals for Bayern Munich last season, a Bundesliga title, numbers that would usually bulldoze their way to individual honours. Yet the missing line on his résumé still stings: no Champions League in 2026. In this era, that omission matters.
Paris Saint-Germain do not have that problem. They went back-to-back in the Champions League, and with that comes a different kind of power. Ousmane Dembele, reborn and decisive on the biggest stage, has thrust himself into the Golden Ball frame, while a host of his teammates at Parc des Princes lurk with their own claims. When you dominate Europe, the spotlight finds you.
For Bacary Sagna, though, the discussion takes a different turn.
The former Arsenal, Manchester City and France defender believes the current debate has drifted away from the player who truly shaped last season. Speaking to GOAL in association with BetVictor Online Casino, he acknowledged Kylian Mbappe’s brilliance but steered the argument in another direction.
“For me the best at the minute, he's in the top three,” Sagna said of Mbappe. “He had an amazing year and he is for me one of the best. But being a striker gives more chances to score, so more chances for the people to look at him favourably.”
Then came the twist.
“For me, Kvara deserves the Ballon d'Or. For me, Kvara [Khvicha Kvaratskhelia] has been phenomenal and being a winger and having such an impact and successful campaign. Apart from winning the Champions League, I think football players will agree that Kvara was the most important player last season.”
That is a strong claim in a year when Mbappe lit up a World Cup and continued to pile up goals. Sagna did not ignore that.
“Of course Kylian had an amazing World Cup and I was pleased to see him scoring so many goals, not only because he's French but because I love football and when I see him shining the way he's starting the season, that's his standard, that's his level and he is in the top few players. He might be the top, the best player in the world, but the problem is how impactful were you for your team last season?”
Impact. That is where the argument tightens.
Real Madrid, the club Mbappe chose to crown his career, have now gone two seasons without a major trophy. The numbers are staggering on an individual level: two La Liga Golden Boots, 90 goals in 106 games. Yet the cabinet has stayed quiet. In the Ballon d’Or race, that silence is deafening.
Louis Saha, another former France international, understands the tension building around his compatriot. Asked by GOAL whether Mbappe will ever get his hands on the Ballon d’Or, he cut straight to the heart of it.
“That's a difficult one, because for sure he wants to win those trophies. He knows that by winning the Champions League, you have a greater chance to win the Ballon d'Or. He knows that that's the way to put all the qualities in front of the best eyes to be judged.”
The pressure is no longer subtle. It is public, visible, and tied to the choices Mbappe has made.
“I do understand that the pressure is on because now it's been almost a very controversial way of not being in those finals. He left the club that won it and now going to a club which is supposed to be one of the favourites, and they don't reach the finals.”
Saha did not shy away from the uncomfortable narrative creeping in around the forward.
“It's starting to question a little bit on the personal side. Let's say on the spiritual side, he seems to be a black cat in a way. So that's the bad line that he wants to rectify as quickly as possible.”
The talent is not in doubt. The ambition is not in doubt. What remains is the marriage of those qualities with the trophies that define eras.
“It's always nice to see someone succeed and reach their goals when they have the potential. I think he deserves it. Regardless of people criticising his style of play, he wants to have everything.
“Every situation needs to be about him and that's the proof of greats. But sometimes if things don’t work out, it's easy to criticise. If Cristiano couldn't convert all these trophies that he had over the years, he would have been doomed a long time ago.”
So the landscape is set. Spain’s champions pushing their way to the front. Kane hunting validation in Europe. PSG’s serial winners flexing their medals. Kvaratskhelia carrying the vote of his peers in the eyes of Sagna. And Mbappe, the Galactico who has everything but the one award that still seems to elude him, standing at a crossroads.
In a year like this, numbers alone will not be enough. The Ballon d’Or will go to the player whose season bent the sport to his will. Who dares to do that most convincingly now?
