Bayern Munich striker Harry Kane has become the first Ballon d’Or winner to be omitted from the FIFPRO Men’s World XI in the same year he claimed football’s most prestigious individual honour.
Kane was named the 2026 Ballon d’Or winner following a remarkable campaign with club and country.
But his fellow professionals surprisingly left him out of the World XI when the lineup was announced on Monday.
Kane’s exclusion marks the first time since the FIFPRO World XI was introduced in 2005 that a reigning Ballon d’Or winner has failed to make the team.
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Lamine Yamal more advanced than Messi, Ronaldo at 19 – Steven GerrardEvery previous Ballon d’Or winner had been included in the World XI in their year of victory.
The omission is particularly striking given Kane’s outstanding statistics in which he scored 73 goals in 65 appearances for England and Bayern.
Kane was edged out by Erling Haaland, Kylian Mbappé, Lamine Yamal and Lionel Messi.
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