The Ballon d’Or build-up in central London was thrown off course after the official website appeared to publish winner pages for Harry Kane, Kylian Mbappé and Lamine Yamal, before removing them. Instead of clean anticipation before the 70th edition of the award, the talk shifted to whether fans had seen a leak, a draft or a plain publishing mistake ahead of the ceremony at the Palladium Theatre.

The website error before the ceremony

BBC reported that, for a short spell, it looked as if Kane had already won. "For a moment, it seemed as though Harry Kane's dreams of winning the Ballon d'Or had come true."

The problem is that the same confusion surrounded Mbappé and Yamal too. Separate articles reportedly appeared naming each of them as the winner, which makes any claim of confirmation impossible to support. The likelier reading is that multiple pages were published in error, whether that was a technical fault, draft content pushed live or some other publishing issue.

BBC's timeline added to the sense of disorder. The pages were reportedly online shortly after 17:15 GMT and removed just before 17:40 BST, leaving less than half an hour for screenshots and rumours to spread before the ceremony itself had even started.

That matters more than a routine website slip because this is not a backroom shortlist update. The ceremony is being staged in central London for the first time, with the red carpet starting two hours before the 9 p.m. event at the Palladium Theatre. A polished build-up was expected. Instead, the award spent part of the evening fighting its own website.

Kane's candidacy is real, the leak is not proof

Kane was always going to be one of the main names in the pre-ceremony coverage, and SPORT1 framed that angle directly. "Tonight, the Ballon d'Or will crown the best footballer in the world. All the information on the broadcast, the favorites and the schedule at a glance. Will it be the crowning moment for Harry Kane of FC Bayern?" SPORT1 quoted that in German, in comments translated from German.

There is enough on the pitch to explain why his name sits high in the conversation. Kane has 26 goals across all competitions in 2026, plus 4 goals and 5 assists in his last five matches. That is elite output by any standard, even before you get into the wider award debate.

Still, the vote has its own cutoff. Voting ended on 28 September, so none of Kane's performances after that date count toward the 2026 award. That is an important bit of context because late-season form can shape public opinion without affecting the actual result.

An international jury of 100 journalists decides the winner from 30 candidates, which is another reason the website drama should be treated carefully. Kane may yet win, or he may not, but the pages that briefly appeared online did not settle anything.

What happens in London tonight

The ceremony begins at 9 p.m. at the Palladium Theatre, with the red carpet from 7 p.m. By then, the Ballon d’Or should have been building attention around its winner, not around whether its own website published three different answers first.

FAQ

Why was the Ballon d’Or ceremony thrown into confusion before it started?

Confusion grew after the official Ballon d’Or website appeared to publish separate winner pages for Harry Kane, Kylian Mbappé and Lamine Yamal, then removed them. Reports said the pages were online shortly after 17:15 GMT and taken down just before 17:40 BST, hours before the ceremony in central London.

Did the Ballon d’Or website leak confirm Harry Kane as the winner?

No. The reports point to an apparent publishing error or draft pages appearing online, not confirmation of the final result. The website briefly listed Kane, Mbappé and Yamal in separate articles, which is exactly why the leak created confusion rather than clarity.

Why is Harry Kane in the Ballon d’Or conversation this year?

Kane's case is built on output that is easy to take seriously. He has 26 goals across 2026 competitions covered here, plus 4 goals and 5 assists in his last five matches. Even so, performances after 28 September are not part of the vote because voting had already closed.

Written by Sam Whitfield with AI-assisted research, cross-checked against 6 outlets. How we work →