Since bursting onto the elite scene in 2017, Mbappé has been a regular contender for the Ballon d’Or. In 2018, a magical year in which he won the World Cup with France at just 19, he claimed the Kopa Trophy for the best young player.

In 2024, he shared the Gerd Müller Trophy ex aequo with Kane, recognising them as the season’s joint top scorers with 52 goals each. But once again, with nine editions of the award now behind him, the top prize has eluded him.

Mbappé was barely 18 when he received his first Ballon d’Or nomination. He finished seventh in the 2017 edition, in a vote won by his idol, Cristiano Ronaldo. Since then, Kylian has never finished outside the top 10, although he has reached the podium only once. He came fourth in 2018, sixth in 2019, ninth in 2021, sixth in 2022, third in 2023, sixth in 2024 and seventh in 2025. The award was not presented in 2020 because of the pandemic.

His consistency has been extraordinary, but he has yet to reach the summit. Like the Champions League at club level, the Ballon d’Or remains one of the major prizes missing from his extensive collection of individual accolades. In 2025, he won the Golden Shoe, awarded to Europe’s leading scorer across domestic leagues.

He has also finished as the top scorer in his league in six consecutive seasons in Ligue 1 with PSG and twice with Madrid in LaLiga. He has been the Champions League’s top scorer in two editions and finished as the leading scorer at the last two World Cups. At the most recent World Cup, he became the tournament’s all-time leading scorer. And the list of individual honours goes on. Yet the space on his trophy shelf reserved for the Ballon d’Or remains empty...

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