Real Madrid manager Jose Mourinho has argued that winning major team trophies should not automatically determine the winner of the 2026 Ballon d’Or, insisting that the award should primarily recognise the player who stands out individually.
Mourinho made the remarks during a Real Madrid press conference in August as debate intensified over this year’s award and the leading candidates following the 2026 World Cup.
The Portuguese coach specifically backed the idea that a player can deserve the individual prize even without winning the Champions League or World Cup. His position has drawn renewed attention following the release of the official 30-player shortlist on September 8.
Among the nominees are several players whose cases are built on outstanding individual campaigns, while others enter the race after combining individual excellence with major team honours.
Mourinho’s argument is particularly relevant to Kylian Mbappe, who is among the leading contenders despite Real Madrid ending the previous campaign without a major trophy.
Mourinho said the Ballon d’Or should identify the player regarded as the best in the world rather than simply reward the individual who happened to play for the team that won the biggest competition.
He argued that collective trophies should be recognised separately from the question of individual excellence.
His reasoning was illustrated by his suggestion that if the Champions League alone determined the Ballon d’Or, the award could effectively become a reward for the coach or team that achieved that success.
Mourinho’s position can be summarised through four factors:
- Individual impact: How decisive a player was throughout the season.
- Consistency: Sustained excellence rather than isolated performances.
- Historical influence: Whether the player’s performances made a lasting impression.
- Team success: Important, but not necessarily decisive on its own.
The Real Madrid manager also referred to legendary winners such as Diego Maradona, Ronaldinho, Ronaldo Nazario, Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi when describing the type of player he believes should define the award.
Although Mourinho did not reduce his argument solely to Mbappe, his comments clearly strengthened the France captain’s case.
Mbappe had an exceptional individual season and became the all-time leading scorer in World Cup history during the 2026 tournament. He also finished as the leading scorer in La Liga, the Champions League and the World Cup.
Those achievements have kept him firmly in the Ballon d’Or conversation despite the absence of a major team trophy.
Mourinho has previously described Mbappe as one of the players capable of winning the award and said the forward’s performances during the summer had set him apart.
The manager’s public support comes at a significant moment for the Real Madrid forward, with the official shortlist now confirmed and voting already forming the centre of football debate ahead of the ceremony.
The 2026 shortlist contains a mixture of players whose candidacies are based on individual statistics, World Cup performances and major club achievements.
Harry Kane, for example, enters the race after a prolific season with Bayern Munich and an impressive World Cup campaign. Lamine Yamal is another major contender following Spain’s World Cup success and Barcelona’s domestic achievements. Rodri also benefits from his role in Spain’s title-winning campaign.
Meanwhile, Paris Saint-Germain’s Ousmane Dembele and Khvicha Kvaratskhelia are among the nominees following PSG’s European success.
The principal debate therefore centres on whether voters will place greater emphasis on:
| Factor | Importance in the 2026 race |
|---|---|
| Individual performance | Central criterion |
| Team achievements | Major consideration |
| World Cup impact | Significant in 2026 |
| Fair play | Formal award criterion |
| Major trophies | Influential but not automatic |
The Ballon d’Or voting system already considers individual performances, team achievements and sporting conduct. Specialist journalists from the top 100 FIFA-ranked countries select their preferred players from the 30-man shortlist.
Mourinho’s comments should not be interpreted as suggesting that trophies are irrelevant under the official Ballon d’Or framework.
Team achievements remain one of the award’s three principal criteria. However, the rules do not state that a player must win a major trophy to become the Ballon d’Or winner.
That distinction strengthens Mourinho’s argument that individual brilliance can remain decisive even when a player’s club or country falls short in major competitions.
The 2026 race provides a practical test of that principle.
Mbappe’s candidacy is built heavily around individual production and historic World Cup achievements, while players such as Kane, Yamal and PSG’s nominees can point to significant collective success as part of their cases.
The 2026 Ballon d’Or ceremony is scheduled for October 26 in London, marking the first time the event will be held in the city. The ceremony will also commemorate the 70th anniversary of the award, whose first winner was England legend Stanley Matthews.
With the 30-player shortlist now public, attention will increasingly focus on the voting battle between the leading candidates.
Mourinho’s intervention has added another layer to that debate by challenging the assumption that the player with the most prestigious team trophy should automatically have the strongest Ballon d’Or claim.
For Mbappe, the argument offers a clear route to victory: persuade voters that his individual influence and historic performances outweigh the absence of a major team title.
For his rivals, the task will be to demonstrate that individual excellence combined with collective success provides the stronger overall case.
Ultimately, the voters—not Mourinho—will decide which interpretation carries the most weight.
