After AS and France Football, Kylian Mbappé answered RFI and The Athletic on Tuesday 22 September. Same subject as ever: his case for the Ballon d’Or 2026, to be awarded on 26 October in London. “Being able to perform individually and burn the retina, that’s what sticks with people,” he explained.
The case holds up on paper. The all-time top scorer at the World Cup since this summer, with 22 goals across three editions. Top scorer in La Liga (25 goals) and the Champions League (15 goals) last season, without a major trophy to show for it. Real Madrid then lost the derby against Atlético, a performance branded poor by the Spanish press.
Lamine Yamal answered in L’Équipe with a different case: the World Cup won with Spain, who beat France 2-0 in the semi-final before beating Argentina 1-0 after extra time in the final. “The advantage with me is that I managed to win the World Cup this year, and obviously that gives me an edge. I think it’s only logical,” he said. Mbappé himself admitted France had missed its game plan that day, pointing to the penalty converted by Mikel Oyarzabal after a foul by Lucas Digne on Yamal, in the 22nd minute, as the turning point of the match, a view shared by Didier Deschamps.
The Frenchman’s campaign is grating even inside newsrooms. “It’s getting embarrassing,” said Daniel Riolo. Christophe Dugarry was harsher still: “Publicly asking for that kind of individual award, I find that childish and pathetic. Demanding it is no proof of greatness, especially not as national team captain.” Similar criticism came from Spain, notably on Cadena SER and El Chiringuito.
Tactically, running a campaign for an individual award, I do that too. In the club delegate’s folder, between the fixture list and the fines list, I slipped in a word for my striker, top scorer in Group B since March. It doesn’t burn anyone’s retina like a Ballon d’Or, but it might earn him a free bag of chips at the clubhouse bar.
It’s true, we checked: DH Les Sports+.
