-1). Harry Kane wins the 2026 Ballon d’Or Harry Kane wins the 2026 Ballon d’Or A record-breaking welter of league and cup goals in 2025/26 has propelled Harry Kane to the Ballon d’Or stage. Here we identify his most iconic and greatest finishes.
Harry Kane’s 36 goals for Bayern Munich in the Bundesliga in 2025/26 earned the striker a second European Golden Shoe while his 61 goals across all competitions for the German giant made headlines around the globe. There were also 12 strikes for his country to consider across a highly prolific year.
Along the way records were broken, while significantly his haul at club level ensured Bayern won a domestic treble. The substantial tally in itself was seriously impressive but included in that number were stand-out moments that warrant recognition in isolation, goals that were special for very different reasons. Let’s celebrate them below….
Harry Kane’s 2025/26 for Bayern Munich by numbers
-Bundesliga: 31 appearances, 36 goals, 5 assists
-DFB Cup: 6 appearances,10 goals
-UEFA Champions League: 13 appearances,14 goals, 2 assists
-Franz Beckenbauer Supercup: 1 appearance,1 goal
-Total: 51 appearances, 61 goals, 7 assists
-Minutes per goal scored: 66
-Minutes per goal or assist: 59
Opening day Hat-Trick vs RB Leipzig
The England captain’s first goal in 2025/26 was converted in the Franz Beckenbauer Supercup, a seasonal curtain-raiser featuring the previous campaign’s league and cup winners. His second, third and fourth arrived at home to RB Leipzig on the opening day of the Bundesliga season.
Since moving to Germany, Kane has consistently opened his account early and strong, firing eight goals in his first six Bundesliga outings in 2023/24, then completing a brace of league hat-tricks by mid-October in 2024/25.
Here, all three goals came from the left channel, two opportunistic, the other a wonderful and clinical finish. A century for Bayern in record time. Having converted from the spot on the stroke of half-time at home to Werder Bremen in late September, the forward then set about making history.
In the 65th minute his moment arrived, a clever assist by Luis Diaz landing at his deadly right foot and only requiring a re-direct to slot away his 15th of the campaign, his tenth in the league. The goal marked Kane’s 100th for Bayern, the 32-year-old reaching a century faster than any other player in the club’s 126 years of existence.
A Third Treble Highlights his Tactical Acumen
Having already racked up two hat-tricks in the opening weeks of the campaign - vs Leipzig and Hoffenheim – Kane then proceeded to single-handedly dismantle Stuttgart and his first of the trio is well worth lingering on. The striker’s regular habit of dropping deep has long been debated on since moving to Bavaria, with some indulging in tactical deep-dives on the topic while others simply marvelled at his strike-rate despite inhabiting the centre-circle for long periods.
His first of three in Stuttgart demonstrated the logic behind the approach..He picked up the ball on the halfway line and ran into acres as the four retreating defenders were mindful of wingers darting around them. Then, with 25 yards to goal he unleashed a fizzing shot that nestled into the far corner. The Ballon d’Or contender is afforded so much more space when he drops, that it’s shrewd to capitalise.
A Thing of Beauty
There are some centre-forwards known for their spectacular efforts. Others are erroneously dismissed as mere ‘tap-in merchants’. Kane is neither of these extremes, instead focusing single-mindedly on the percentages.
If an ungainly nudge with his left knee gets that ball over the line up then up goes the knee. If his best chance of scoring demands craft and subtlety then he absolutely has that in his tool-box. At the Allianz Arena last January, with Wolfsburg as the opponents, Kane executed one of 10 pure match-winners across his season, this one a thing of real beauty.
Closed down by a full-back, and stationed to the left of goal, the forward curled an exquisite shot that caressed both the bar and post on route to the net.
Lethal from 12 yards
A penalty against Borussia Dortmund in late-February took Kane to 30 league goals for the season and the forward’s unerring accuracy from the spot certainly played a part in his goal-accumulation last term.
All told, he converted ten penalties in the league, four in the Champions League and a further three as Bayern went all the way in the DFB-Pokal. His only miss occurred in the penultimate league game away at Wolfsburg, a consequence of the opposition keeper scuffing up the spot unnoticed.
The man for the big occasion
If Kane was a goal-machine domestically the same was true of his continental endeavours, firing 14 goals in the Champions League. This lofty tally saw him share the leading goalscorer merit with Kylian Mbappe in the competition.
In early-April these two renowned finishers encountered one another at the Bernabeu, in a marquee quarter-final that produced ten goals over the two legs. In Madrid, it was Kane who came out on top, slamming home a low drive from just outside the box to conjure up a winner for Die Roten.
Two Parting Hat-Tricks
Remarkably and aptly, Kane closed his Bundesliga account in 2025/26 in the same manner he opened it, with an outstanding hat-trick, on this occasion with FC Koln as the victims. A neat volley, resourceful free-kick and long-range strike secured him a third Torjägerkanone though in truth that had already been wrapped up many weeks before.
Seven days later he was at it again, firing another hat-trick in the DFB-Pokal final to down Stuttgart. His cup final trio was his fifth hat-trick of what can only be deemed an astonishingly prolific campaign. That equates to one every ten matches.
-1). Alexia Putellas wins the Ballon d'Or after an emotional season! 2). Ewa Pajor. 3). Khadija Shaw. 4). Melchie Dumornay. 5). Patri Guijarro. 6). Caroline Graham. 7). Pernille Harder. 8 ). Claudia Pina. 9). Alessia Ruso. 10). Temwa Chawinga. 11). Yui Hasegawa. 12). Clara Buhl. 13). Mariona Caldentey. 14. Wenchie Renard. 15). Cata Coll.
16). Mapi Leon. 17). Esmee Brugts. 18). Barba Band. 19). Tessa Wallacot. 20). Selma Bacha. 21). Scarlet Camberos. 22). Manaka Matsukubo. 23). Manoka Tarikawa. 24). Kerstin Casparji. 25). Carola Weir.
Some players go out in style; Alexia Putellas left in style, bidding farewell to her beloved Barcelona with a season to remember. When Alèxia Putellas hangs up her boots in the distant future - leaving women’s football all the poorer for it -she will be able to look back on her farewell season with Barcelona Femení and consider it a job very well done.
From August to May, her goals, creativity and competitive spirit propelled the Blaugranas to a sweeping quadruple, dominating all domestic competitions across three tournaments and securing the club’s fourth UEFA Champions League title.
In La Liga F, the magnificent playmaker scored nine goals in 16 starts, whilst Barça dominated from start to finish, losing just one match all season. In the Copa de la Reina, she scored three goals in four matches. However, she saved her most special performances for Europe, where her team swept aside all opposition in the group stage and every subsequent round.
Even by the high standards expected of a two-time Ballon d’Or winner, Putellas’s performance throughout the 2025/26 season was exceptional, and every pass, dribble and shot was another parting gift to a city that adores her.
Impeccable on the continent
Alèxia Putellas’ statistics in the 2025/26 Champions League
-Matches played: 11
-Goals: 7
-Assists: 7
-Passing accuracy: 86.73%
As she captained her team to their fourth continental title in six years, Putellas was involved in 14 goals and, quite frankly, was at times unstoppable, even when facing Europe’s elite.
Of her 11 matches — which culminated in a 4-0 victory over OL Lyonnes in the final — perhaps her most outstanding 90 minutes were those she played against Real Madrid in the first leg of what turned out to be a very one-sided quarter-final tie. Barça ran out 6–2 winners in the Spanish capital, with the 32-year-old serving as the inspiration and involved in every move.
That night, Putellas made four key passes, scored a goal and provided an assist, as well as completing 27 dribbles whilst orchestrating wave after wave of attacks.
One statistic in particular speaks volumes: out of 97 touches, only two were misplaced.
An Emotional Farewell
After 14 seasons, 38 titles and a career that has made the midfielder an immortal legend, Putellas announced last May that she was leaving Catalonia – news that broke just three days after she had led the Blaugranas to glory in the Champions League. Barely 24 hours later, a ceremony was organised at Spotify Camp Nou where Putellas was surrounded by her family and friends, as well as the dazzling collection of trophies she had won since arriving from Levante in 2012.
Flanked by her two Ballon d’Or awards, the player sat beside the pitch and became emotional at times, particularly when watching a video created for the occasion which highlighted her unbreakable bond with the club and the city. When asked for her thoughts on the solemn ceremony, she gave a moving response. “Yesterday my heart ached. I felt an incredible emptiness. Today I am filled with love.”
A Perfect Story
After completing a season to remember, Putellas posted her farewell message on Instagram, and her post soon racked up half a million ‘likes’. In it, she addressed the club’s supporters directly, known colloquially as ‘culés’.
“Culés, I remember the first time I heard your chants. I was six years old and it was my first time at Camp Nou with my father. Back then, I only saw men playing at the stadium, and I could never have imagined that one day more than 90,000 culés would be there shouting my name.”He concluded his message by describing his incredibly successful spell at Barcelona as “a perfect story”. In that sense, his 2025/26 season proved to be a spectacular final chapter.
Men's Young Talent of the Year - Discover the Full Ranking of the Young Talent of the Year 2026
Discover the exclusive full ranking of the Men's Young Talent of the Year Ballon d'Or™ Trophy on Ballondor.com, the official website of the Ballon d'Or™, and find out the final positions of all ten nominees. From the winner to the next generation of football stars, explore the official results and the complete 2026 Young Talent of the Year ranking, exclusively on Ballondor.com.
The Men's Young Talent of the Year award was presented on 26 October 2026 in London, during the 70th Ballon d'Or™ ceremony at the London Palladium. The award recognises the world's most outstanding young male footballer, celebrating the emerging talents making their mark on the international stage.
Discover the exclusive full ranking of the Men's Young Talent of the Year Ballon d'Or™ Trophy on Ballondor.com, the official website of the Ballon d'Or™, and find out the final positions of all ten nominees. From the winner to the next generation of football stars, explore the official results and the complete 2026 Young Talent of the Year ranking, exclusively on Ballondor.com.
1). Lamine Yamal. 2)? Pau Cubarsi. 3). Warren Zara Emery. 4). Lermart Karl. 7). Kerim Alajubegovic. 8 ). Eli Junior Kroupi. 9). Ibrahim Maza and 10). Johan Manzambi.
https://ballondor.com/news/posts/2026-ballon-dor-all-the-winners-and-rankings
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