Real Madrid superstar Kylian Mbappe enjoyed an extraordinary 2025-26 campaign, scoring 42 goals for his club and another ten at the World Cup.
His performances made him one of the leading contenders for the Ballon d’Or, but it eventually went to Bayern Munich striker Harry Kane.
As quoted by AS, France Football editor-in-chief Vincent Garcia has now revealed just how close Mbappe came to winning his first-ever Ballon d’Or.
In fact, he confirmed that the Real Madrid superstar was leading the voting for a considerable period.
Mbappe was leading the Ballon d’Or voting
Speaking to L’Equipe after Monday’s ceremony, Garcia confirmed that the battle between Kane and Mbappe was exceptionally close.
“The difference was even smaller than between Rodri and Vinicius in 2024, which was 41 points, and that was already a very narrow margin,” he explained.
He also explained how Harry Kane overtook him at the last moment.
“Mbappe was leading for a long time, but Kane ended up winning. Mbappe has had an extraordinary season. It was incredibly close between Harry Kane and Kylian Mbappe in the battle for first place this year,” he said.
Harry Kane pipped Kylian Mbappe to the Ballon d’Or. (Photo by Alex Grimm/Getty Images)
Garcia also suggested that Spain’s World Cup success worked against individual candidates, with Rodri and Lamine Yamal splitting votes.
The Barcelona youngster eventually finished third, while his team-mate came fourth. For the longest time, it looked like Lamine was in the running for the award.
However, judging by Garcia’s words, it looks like it was a two-horse race between Kane and Mbappe, with the former edging it.
Real Madrid star has every reason to remain optimistic
Mbappe’s individual campaign brought him so close to winning the award even without winning a single trophy for club or country.
The French superstar would have almost certainly walked away with the award if Los Blancos had picked up at least one piece of silverware last summer.
Mbappe has started the new season in excellent form. (Photo by Alex Caparros/Getty Images)
Ultimately, Kane’s 73 goals for club and country, along with Bayern’s domestic trophies, gave the Englishman an advantage.
Mbappe has already started the new season in excellent form, maintaining his ridiculously high goalscoring numbers.
He scored twice in Sunday’s 2-1 Clasico victory over Barcelona. Mbappe will know that if he has another good campaign, he could take the final step towards the trophy next year.
At 27, the France international is in the prime of his career. His narrow Ballon d’Or defeat might be a bitter pill to swallow, but there will be future chances.
Turning his individual excellence into collective trophies will have to be the next step, and it remains to be seen how he fares for Madrid.
Discover more from NAIRAVOICE.COM.NG
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
