Yamal and Kane among them: Mbappé crushes his rivals and claims a prestigious award

João Neves finished runner-up

Days before the hotly anticipated 2026 Ballon d'Or ceremony, another major award has found its winner.

The prestigious "Onze d'Or", handed out every year by Onze Mondial magazine and a cornerstone of the football world for half a century, has revealed its champion.

Legends of the game have claimed it down the years: Michel Platini, Diego Maradona, Zinedine Zidane, Thierry Henry, Didier Drogba, Karim Benzema, Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi.

According to Foot Mercato, this award stands apart by handing supporters absolute authority. The winner is chosen exclusively through a public vote from around the world.

For the 2026 edition, the voters made a clear and unambiguous choice. Kylian Mbappe, 27, takes the award and sits on the throne. The France captain, who recently became the new advertising face of Swiss brand "On" and scored a superb goal against Sevilla on Sunday evening, crushed the competition with 48.2% of the votes, finishing well ahead of Paris Saint-Germain's Joao Neves on 11.9%.

His resounding victory left him clear of PSG playmaker Khvicha Kvaratskhelia (10.8%) and Barcelona's rising talent Lamine Yamal (9.7%), as well as Bayern Munich forwards Harry Kane (4.4%) and Michael Olise (2.9%).

With this triumph, the French forward succeeds his former teammate Ousmane Dembele, last year's winner, and enjoys a splendid start before the final Ballon d'Or winner is announced.