Harry Kane says he wants to stay at Bayern Munich long-term. Barcelona, all the same, are watching.

The England captain is in the final year of the four-year contract he signed on his 2023 move to Bavaria, and the club that lands him next summer, if he ever gets there, would sign the current Ballon d’Or favourite on a free transfer.

According to talkSPORT, cited in reports from Barca Universal and AllFootball, Barcelona made initial contact with Kane’s representatives in June but never tabled a formal proposal. Kane is described as a secondary option behind primary target Julián Álvarez, with Erling Haaland also on the list of alternatives.

Kane opens the door to a new deal

Kane addressed the negotiations after Bayern’s opening Bundesliga match of the season against VfB Stuttgart in late August, confirming the first round of talks had taken place that week.

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“Talks have been positive. So far, so good,” he said.

“I’d like to stay long term. We’ll have to see how many years that is.”

Kane added that there was “no panic from either side” and that he expected both parties to find an agreement. Sporting director Max Eberl had confirmed before the season started that discussions were already under way.

Bayern want it done before January

The clock, though, is real. Kane’s current deal expires at the end of the 2026/27 season, and from January 1, 2027 he would be free to open pre-contract talks with clubs outside Germany. Bayern are confident of agreeing a new long-term deal before January, according to TEAMtalk, which also lists Manchester United and Tottenham as potential suitors if the extension slips into free-transfer territory.

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The Bavarians have every reason to move quickly. Kane finished last season as the Bundesliga’s top scorer for a third year running and has scored 150 goals in 153 appearances for Bayern across all competitions since joining from Tottenham, winning two league titles along the way.

Kane the Ballon d’Or favourite

Kane is one of the 30 nominees on the 2026 Ballon d’Or shortlist, alongside Kylian Mbappé, Lamine Yamal and Jude Bellingham, and enters the vote as the bookmakers’ favourite after a 73-goal season for club and country. The winner will be announced at the ceremony in London on October 26.

For Barcelona, still without a like-for-like replacement for Robert Lewandowski since he left at the end of last season, the appeal of a free-transfer move for the sport’s most in-form goalscorer is obvious. At 33, though, Kane would be a short-term fix rather than the younger, long-term successor Hansi Flick’s squad has been chasing, which is why Álvarez heads the shortlist.

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