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Ballon d’Or Odds 2026: Who is going to win the Ballon d’Or?
Punters can find the latest Ballon d’Or odds for the 2026 winner here, with odds updating regularly throughout the season
With the 2025/26 season underway, attention already turns to the world’s best players and the most coveted individual award in football: the Ballon d’Or.
The Ballon d’Or is awarded annually to the best football player in the world, as voted for by journalists, national team coaches, and captains.
The nature of the award means that Ballon d’Or betting is a popular market with punters, and betting sites have already priced up the 2026 Ballon d’Or betting market.
This page provides a guide to Ballon d’Or odds, including details on how the voting for the award works and who the past winners are.
In addition, this page will detail the latest Ballon d’Or odds and betting offers from football betting sites. We’ve produced this guide to the latest live Ballon d'Or betting odds to help readers find the best prices throughout the course of the season.
On this page, punters will find top value on all football odds for Ballon d'Or markets, with any changes made by online bookmakers immediately reflected by our odds comparison tool.
All our offers and odds for Ballon d’Or betting markets come from recommended online bookmakers, all of which are licensed by the UK Gambling Commission.
Ballon d’Or Betting
This tool above displays the latest odds on Ballon d’Or betting. The market is a simple on, with punters betting on which player will win the award.
Performances across all competitions, both domestic and international, are taken into account, with extra weighting given to players who win – or perform well in – major competitions.
Forwards and attacking players often dominate the award, but midfielders and defenders have also won. Fabio Cannavaro was the last defender to win the award in 2006 as he captained Italy to a victorious World Cup campaign, while Luka Modrić (2018) and Rodri (2024) won off the back off success in international tournaments.
Betting factors to consider include trophies won, Champions League performances, major international tournaments, and individual statistics such as goals and assists.
Ballon d’Or Odds Explained
Ballon d’Or odds reflect the odds for outright betting only, as betting sites do not offer each-way betting terms on the Ballon d’Or market due to the nature of the award (as there is only one winner).
Ballon d'Or winner odds fluctuate throughout the season depending on form, injuries, and trophy potential, with plenty of weight given to whether a player wins major competitions such as their domestic league, the Champions League and any international tournaments.
The award is decided by a voting panel of international journalists, national team coaches and captains, with each individual ranking players from first to fifth, with points awarded based on position. The player with the most points wins.
Who Could Win the 2026 Ballon d’Or?
The odds for Ballon d'Or 2026 winner have already been priced early into the season, with some notable performances already across Europe.
Players including Harry Kane, Kylian Mbappe and Mo Salah are already in the running after an eye-catching starts to the season, while 2025 winner Ousmane Dembele and runner-up Lamine Yamal also backed to continue their superb form into this season.
Ousmane Dembélé (Ballon d’Or 2025 winner)
The Frenchman continued his career resurgence in 2025 by picking up the most coveted individual award in football, with his performances in Ligue 1 and the latter stages of the Champions League catching the eye as he led PSG to their first ever European Cup.
Lamine Yamal (2025 Kopa Trophy winner, Ballon d’Or runner-up)
The Barcelona teenager is already regarded as one of the brightest young stars in world football and won the Kopa Trophy – the award given to the world’s best young player – in 2025. He was runner up to Ousmane Dembele in the voting for the main award too, so will likely be high in the Ballon d'Or winners odds throughout the season.
Kylian Mbappé (2017 Kopa Trophy winner)
Mbappe remains one of the world’s best players, and he enters 2025/26 off the back of a season in which he won the European Golden Shoe with 31 goals in La Liga. If he can lead Real Madrid to a 16th European Cup, he will certainly be in the running for a maiden Ballon d’Or, with Los Blancos one of the leading contenders in the Champions League odds.
Harry Kane
Bayern Munich and England striker Harry Kane has continued his superb scoring run at the start of 2025/26, and with opportunities to win the Champions League and World Cup in 2026, he could well find himself high in the Ballon d’Or odds 2026 come the end of the season. Bayern are overwhelming favourites for the title in the Bundesliga odds, while England are one of the top sides in the betting in the World Cup odds.
Mohamed Salah
Salah was an early favourite in 2025 after a string of superb performances led Liverpool to the Premier League title, and with the Reds having strengthened in the summer, and are already firm favourites in the Premier League winner odds, the Egyptian may find himself high in the voting again if he can lead his respective teams to success on the club and international stage.
Past Ballon d’Or Winners
Below is a list of the previous 10 winners of the Ballon dOr:
Year | Winner | Club/Nation |
2025 | Ousmane Dembélé | PSG / France |
2024 | Lionel Messi | Inter Miami / Argentina |
2023 | Lionel Messi | PSG / Argentina |
2022 | Karim Benzema | Real Madrid / France |
2021 | Lionel Messi | PSG / Argentina |
2019 | Lionel Messi | Barcelona / Argentina |
2018 | Luka Modrić | Real Madrid / Croatia |
2017 | Cristiano Ronaldo | Real Madrid / Portugal |
2016 | Cristiano Ronaldo | Real Madrid / Portugal |
2015 | Lionel Messi | Barcelona / Argentina |
Responsible Gambling
If you’re having a bet on the Ballon d’Or, it’s vital to practice responsible gambling.
Betting can be addictive, and it’s important to stay in control of your gambling, whether you’re using online bookies, casino sites, slot sites, bingo sites or any other gambling platform.
Never treat gambling as a way to make money, never bet more than you can afford and when the fun stops, stop.
Gambling sites offer punters tools, like deposit limits, profit and loss trackers and self-exclusion options, to help you stay in control.
Always treat free bet offers or casino bonuses with an element of caution. They are widely available on gambling apps, but always check the terms and conditions, and consider whether they are worth your attention.
If you ever feel like you need help or advice on gambling addiction, don’t hesitate to contact one of the charities or organisations below.
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