Ballon d’Or betting odds & guide: Kane pulls clear of Yamal

The Ballon d’Or betting continues to favor England skipper Harry Kane, who has emerged as a very strong favorite in the Ballon d’Or odds on betting sites ahead of Lamine Yamal to claim the award. Kane is now as short as 1/4 to win European football’s top gong.

The winner of football’s biggest individual honor will be unveiled at the London Palladium Theater on Monday, October 26, and we have the latest Ballon d’Or odds which suggest Kane is now overwhelming favorite to be handed the famous Golden Ball trophy.

Lamine Yamal and Harry Kane have taken up most of the Ballon d’Or betting book percentage in recent months. Kane opened as a favorite on football betting sites when the 30-man shortlist was announced.

However, the pendulum swung in Yamal’s favor at the start of October after a glut of bets on the Spanish teenager, only for Kane to reclaim his place at the top of the market, and now the Englishman is pretty clear of Yamal.

In fact, Kane is now an overwhelming favorite to win the Ballon d’Or 2026 with betting odds as low as 1/4 in places. The odds suggest it is a two-horse race between Yamal and Kane with Kylian Mbappe next in the betting at 14/1.

Mbappe may rightly be on the market, with some big names in football suggesting that the France international should be the main contender for Harry Kane’s upcoming prize.

Lionel Messi remains a 25/1 chance to win the ninth Ballon d’Or of his career with his price on betting apps slashed following his reported retirement from international football.

2024 Ballon d’Or winner Rodri still hangs among the top five Ballon d’Or chances after his exploits for Spain in the World Cup, but the Spain international is likely to be surprisingly on the drift.

Rodri is now a similar award to PSG ace Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, who had his Ballon d’Or prize cut short during the award ceremony.

Kane would be only the fifth Englishman to win the Ballon d’Or if the bookies’ belief in him is justified.

Michael Owen was the last player from Great Britain to do it in 2001. Kane once again enjoyed a stellar campaign on the biggest stage for the Three Lions, scoring six times for World Cup bronze medals.

Kane has set the football world on fire since his move from Tottenham to Bayern Munich.

The 33-year-old was top scorer in the Bundesliga last term, bagging 36 league goals as Bayern won the title, with his scoring exploits also earning him the Golden Shoe as Europe’s top hitman. The Englishman scored 14 times in the Champions League last season.

Yamal mainly plays as a right winger for Barcelona in Spain. He scored 24 goals in 45 appearances for Barca last season as they won La Liga.

The 19-year-old then arguably underperformed at the World Cup after picking up an injury before the tournament.

He scored just once in 697 World Cup minutes for Spain and didn’t even score an assist. Yamal winning the Ballon d’Or would be a big surprise for some.

The plucky youngster has amassed a total of 11 goals for his national team, and Yamal was runner-up to Ousmane Dembele for last year’s Ballon d’Or award, so don’t discount him.

The French maestro played 769 minutes of the French World Cup, collecting 10 goals and four assists, claiming the Golden Boot for the second tournament in a row in the process.

He had a ding-dong battle with Lionel Messi to become the top scorer but pulled away in the end. Mbappe has been hit or miss at times, but the 2025/26 season has seen him at the top of his game.

Mbappe ended his last two La Liga campaigns for Real Madrid as the top scorer, winning the “Pichichi”.

He won the European Golden Boot for the first time in his career with 31 league goals in the 2024/25 season and finished the 2025/26 campaign as top scorer in the Champions League with 15 goals.

Looking back at the recent history of Ballon d’Or winners, the bookmakers are rarely wrong with who they put at the top of the market.

Below are the last five Ballon d’Or winners and their betting odds on the night of the ceremony.

Winner of the prestigious award a record eight times, Messi never seems to age and cannot be completely discounted here.

He was as good as ever in the summer when he led Argentina to another final where they lost to eventual champions Spain. The 39-year-old scored eight times and assisted four times while playing over 850 minutes for La Albiceleste in North America.

Messi has just retired from international football and signed off with a goal and two assists on his 208th and final cap for his country in a 3-0 friendly win over Benin.

One last Ballon d’Or would be the icing on the cake of a glittering international career and who knows, he might get the sentimental vote, but the current Ballon d’Or chances tell a different story.

Rodri was first in the pass completion rate at the World Cup, where he won the Golden Ball after being voted the best player of the tournament for the champions.

After a stop-start season for Manchester City following a long injury lay-off, the 6ft 3in defensive midfielder played 819 minutes for Spain and was a key cog in their winning machine.

Rodri surprisingly won the Ballon d’Or in 2024 and the 30-year-old moved to Barcelona in the summer.

Sometimes Olise makes the headlines for the wrong reasons, but on the pitch his football certainly does the talking.

Olise won the award for the most assists during the Summer World Cup, breaking the previous record with seven recorded assists.

The Frenchman also assisted 20 times in the Bundesliga for Bayern Munich last season and scored 15 times for the German champions. Olise is now priced around the 50/1 mark to pick up the gong.

It seems strange to suggest that Ousmane Dembele in the Khvicha Kvaratskhelia are underdogs to win the Ballon d’Or 2026, with both players instrumental in PGS’s back-to-back Champions League victories.

Dembele is the current holder of the Ballon d’Or and scored six times for France at the World Cup, where his nation went out in the semi-finals at the hands of Spain.

The 29-year-old has scored eight times in each of PSG’s last two Champions League-winning campaigns, including in last season’s final against Arsenal.

Kvaratskhelia Lack of pedigree on the international stage is what costs him a more realistic chance of winning the Ballon d’Or. Now the Georgian is sidelined for an extended spell after tearing his cruciate ligament against Barcelona.

The PSG winger is considered one of the best players in the world and the best player in Georgian history, but is as big as 80/1 to win the Ballon d’Or. His injury came at a very bad time.

Punters can bet on the Ballon d’Or at the majority of online bookies, but the bookmakers below have been highlighted by their range of football betting offers, including registration bonuses that can be used to bet on any football market.

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Yes. You can still bet on the Ballon d’Or, but with voting closed, it looks like it’s a two-horse race between Harry Kane (4/11 Bet365) and Lamine Yamal (11/4 Betfred).

Harry Kane is the overwhelming favorite to win the 2026 Ballon d’Or. The English shooter is now as short as 1/4 in places to win the award.

There are currently no markets for the Ballon d’Or Feminine or Kopa Trophy. Aitana Bonmati won the women’s award for the third consecutive year in 2025. Barcelona forward Ewa Pajor is widely expected to win the former award this year.

The best Ballon d’Or odds can be found on the best football betting sites recommended on our site. Be sure to click through our betting odds widgets to take advantage of the best prices.

Ousmane Dembele of Paris Saint-Germain won the Ligue 1, the Coupe de France and the Champions League in 2025. The Frenchman won the Ballon d’Or last year, but the reigning champions are a 100/1 poke to retain the award in 2026.