Vote split between Spain’s stars opened door for Harry Kane, says Ballon d’Or chief

Vincent Garcia, editor-in-chief of France Football and head of the Ballon d’Or judging panel, says divided voting between Rodri and Lamine Yamal played a decisive part in Harry Kane winning this year’s award.

Kane claimed the prestigious prize while no member of Spain’s World Cup-winning side finished among the leading positions. Garcia said the strength of Spain’s squad worked against its individual candidates, with votes spread across several players.

Speaking to French newspaper L’Equipe, Garcia said: “I honestly believe Rodri deprived Lamine of some votes. In the Spain team that won the World Cup, there was a clear split in the voting between Rodri and Lamine Yamal, and that division cost them both a great deal.”

He added: “There was a significant scattering of votes among the Spanish players. More importantly, Spain were a complete team and an outstanding collective machine, so it was almost impossible for the voters to highlight one individual performance and favour it above the others.”

Yamal’s injury and limited goals

Garcia also explained why Yamal, the Barcelona winger who entered the tournament as one of the leading contenders, struggled to stand out in the final vote.

“Lamine Yamal became a world champion, and that is a great achievement, but in reality he scored only one goal and began the tournament injured,” Garcia said.

“That complicated situation made it extremely difficult for the judging panel to decide between the Spanish players.”

Asked who he had personally selected in the vote, Garcia declined to reveal the name. Instead, he said: “I voted for someone who did not win, and I believe he also deserved to win. But you will see everything on Saturday when France Football publishes the full and detailed results.”

Kane edged Mbappe in close finish

Garcia said the final contest between Kane and Kylian Mbappe remained finely balanced until the closing stages of the voting process.

“Kylian Mbappe was ahead in the race for most of the voting period before Harry Kane came back strongly,” he said. “The points difference between Kane and Mbappe was extremely small, even smaller than the gap between Rodri and Vinicius in 2024, which was 41 points.”

Garcia rejected the suggestion that Kane’s award was based solely on his team’s achievements and argued that the England striker’s individual numbers made him a worthy winner.

“He is, above all, a great goalscorer,” Garcia said. “He scored 73 goals for his club and country this season, won every title in Germany with Bayern Munich, and reached the semi-finals of the Champions League.

“With England, he reached the World Cup semi-finals. There is no doubt that the judging panel felt he was the best and most complete choice among all the candidates.”